Forgotten Guardians
by Illidan the Half Demon
Summary: An evil once thought long dead has been resurrected, bringing a new wave of destruction to the world. Can two people who once knew this evil stop it from harming the young people of the future? Sequel to The Wolves Seal and Tournament of Power.
1. Chapter 1: Plans

**Hello everyone! Just a warning to anyone new to this series that I've wrote, you may want to read the first two parts to this story, because there are references to them. Plus, it helps you gather what I did with the past of my story.**

**Anyways, to all of the people who have been waiting for what seemed like an eternity on this story, I apologize for it's lateness. I kind of underestimated the time I had to complete this story, plus, I've been semi lazy on writing it. I was getting a lot done for a while, but I've really begun to be truly lazy in the last month or two with my writing. I guess due that I've had things to do at work (where I do most of my writing, lol), plus at home I just don't feel the urge to write very often. Also, I've come up with an idea on another new story, this one being an Inuyasha fan fic, hence it has regretfully taken away some of my creative processes. But be assured, I will fully finish this story. I was going to hold off till I had fully wrote this story out before posting it, but since I'm so close to the end of writing it, I figured, I might as well start posting.**

**By the way, I'm sure everyone has noticed that I posted this at rating T. Truthfully, it could probably pass for K+, but just to be on the safe side for a few scenes, I went with T. Eh, there is suggestive stuff, but that's it. Really, I could go with K+, but as I said, to err on caution, I went T.**

**At any rate, without further ado, the story awaits. I hope to see reviews from all of my old readers, along with reviews from new ones. Enjoy guys!**

**Chapter 1**

"It's raining again…" a depressed sounding voice said.

A young man with mid-back length black hair that was layered out, and somewhat flared out that was in his early twenties was staring out the windows. He had violet eyes as well, which gave him a bit of a different look. He wore yellow long sleeve shirt with a green vest, as well as blue jeans and white sneakers.

"It could be a typhoon and it wouldn't matter to me really Mokuba." replied a voice with some warmness, yet a bit of sternness from a red chair facing the windows of the outside of the skyscraper.

Mokuba slightly smirked and looked back from the window over to a young man who was in his later twenties. He was wearing a blue business suit with a red tie, and a small white dragon pendant attached to his coat collar. He had piercing dark blue eyes, with brown hair that went down to his neck, but was trimmed up. He had a look of true sternness, but there seemed to be signs of a small grin at his last comment.

Lightly chuckling, the stern young man said "So long as we have Duel Disks and plenty of business, I could care less about the weather."

Chuckling, Mokuba simply said "Very true Seto."

About this time, the phone rang, and Mokuba quickly picked it up, saying "This is Mokuba Kaiba speaking."

The voice on the other end was a feminine one, and said "Mr. Kaiba, there is a letter here addressed to you and Mr. Seto Kaiba. Shall I send it on in?"

Recognizing it as their secretary, Mokuba replied "Nah, I'll come out and get it. Thanks. By the way, who is it from?"

"Who else would mail us a letter Mokuba?" Seto said with a bit of irritation in his voice, causing Mokuba to miss the name that was said.

Sighing and shrugging, he sat the phone back on the hook and then walked through the set of double doors to their office. He then entered the area where their personal secretary sat. The young woman had shoulder length blonde hair, which she usually kept tied up in some kind of hairstyle. Mokuba was quite fond of her, for she was nearly his own age, and had thought many a times about asking her out, but knew better.

One, it was against company regulations, although him and Seto owned the company, which meant they could make or break the rules. But two was due that he didn't want to make an awkward situation if things didn't work out.

Sighing slightly, Mokuba continued on, saying "Ms. Long."

She looked up at him, giving him a small, but flirtatious smile at that. She then picked up the letter and handed it to him, making Mokuba quickly retreat before he could say a single word. Ms. Long only sighed at this, for she liked Mokuba as well, but knew better than to disobey the bosses, even if one was very attractive to her.

Once back inside the door of his and Seto's office, Mokuba let out a loud and audible sigh as he leaned heavily on the door.

"She did it to you again, didn't she Mokuba?" Seto called out, which completely startled Mokuba.

Glaring back at his brother, Mokuba only smugly replied "As if she could do anything to me."

Chuckling, Seto simply countered with "Sure… other than what you dream of what she does to you."

Looking away, Mokuba only threw the letter to Seto, who expertly caught it. Seeing the address of a familiar college on it, Seto chuckled.

"I didn't even have to really guess who it was from. It's as predictable as Wheeler's weekly challenges to me, and the weekly results of those duels." Seto said smugly.

Turning his attention back to his brother, Mokuba replied "Actually, he's won some of those duels Seto. So, it's not totally predicable."

Snorting, Seto replied "Those lucky wins of his don't count."

Mokuba could only laugh at his brother's comment, and said back "Well, whatever, you have mail."

Picking up his letter opener, which had a white dragon head hilt, Seto said "Well, we might as well see what those two have to say."

After opening up the letter, Seto gently pulled out a small formal card. Looking at the lettering on the front, he saw the letters "You are cordially invited."

He then opened the card to find a written invitation, inviting both him and Mokuba to a graduation ceremony, followed by a small party. At the bottom, two names were written into the note, making Seto smirk once more.

"So, they're finally graduating from grad school. About freaking time! I was getting tired of sending the money to Pegasus so he could wire it to them as that scholarship." Seto said with a bit of irritation.

Raising an eyebrow, Mokuba asked "You mean you still haven't told either of them you're the one that actually paid for their schooling?"

Shaking his head, Seto simply replied "Nope, I haven't, and I don't intend on it just yet. I will someday, but not today."

Sighing, Mokuba then asked "So, are we going?"

Thinking for a moment, a smile finally graced Seto's face as he said "Yes, we are. It's time I made my intentions clear to them."

Nodding, Mokuba then asked "When is the date?"

"It's on May the ninth. That gives us a month to prepare. In the mean time, Duel Academy will be letting out at the beginning of June, so it all works out for us." Seto replied.

Without warning, the phone then began to ring loudly, making Mokuba jump. Snickering at his little brother's reaction, Seto then picked up the phone and answered "Seto Kaiba speaking."

"Kaiba-boy!" exclaimed a voice from the other side.

Groaning, Seto replied "What do you want now Pegasus?"

"Is that anyway to talk to an old friend? After all, I'm the one who has to constantly call you to ask about things. So, how are you and your brother? Coming to visit anytime soon? How's the weather…"

"STOP IT AND GET TO THE POINT OF YOUR CALL!" roared Seto with great irritation, if not anger, in his voice.

There was a light chuckle on the other end before Pegasus replied "My, my, aren't we impatient? Well, the reason I'm calling is that I got an invitation in the mail today for a certain couple's graduation, and thought I'd ask if you was lucky enough to get one also."

"Of course I received one! Those two would invite everyone, including myself that they knew for this little event." Seto replied with irritation still in his voice.

"But of course Kaiba-boy. After all, not everyone graduates from grad school, now do they? By the way, you sound rather moody. Are you getting enough fiber in your diet? I heard fiber makes you…"

Growling loudly, Seto yelled "SHUT UP ABOUT THIS STUPID RANDOM CRAP ALREADY PEGASUS AND GET TO THE POINT!"

After a moment of chuckling, Pegasus finally said "The reason I called was to see if you was planning on still going through with the plan we discussed those many years ago for those two. I wanted to know so if you weren't going to hire them, I could look into it."

"What makes you think those two would even work for you?! I'll take care of it, so don't worry about that Pegasus. I'm going to make the arrangements soon enough." Seto replied with still great irritation in his voice.

"Very well Kaiba-boy. Well, I shall go at that. I thought I'd make sure first. Till the next time we talk. Chow."

The phone then went dead as Seto slammed it back onto the receiver. "That idiot really makes me mad." he said in a truly irritated voice as he stood up and went to look out the window.

Mokuba only giggled at his brother and said "Ah, you know him. He loves to press your buttons Seto. Don't let it bother you too much."

Shaking his head, Seto replied "I know, but it infuriates me to no end that he does it."

Sighing, he then turned back to Mokuba and said "Well, now let's discuss a small bit of business. The academy is cranking out some of the best and brightest duelists this year. The top ranked duelist in the school, Zane Truesdale, will be graduating this year."

Nodding, Mokuba then said "Well, there is another great student coming up through the ranks, who happens to be a first year student. He is also unofficially ranked number two in the school to Zane. Only problem is, he's only ranked number two dueling skills wise, not grade wise."

Smiling, Seto replied "Yes, I know of the one you speak of. He represented Duel Academy in the School Duel against North Academy. He won that duel, and has beaten everyone within his own class. He's beaten every opponent put in front of him, including second and third year duelists, well, excluding Zane. That is his only current loss on his record. Otherwise, he has a perfect record."

"That's not bad at all for a Slifer Red student. Actually, that's amazing for a Slifer Red duelist. Zane is an Obelisk Blue, which makes sense, but this other kid, Jaden Yuki, he's something else." Mokuba commented.

Nodding, Seto replied "Yes, that's the truth. That is the reason behind me hiring some new help. I want to turn the Slifer's standing around. They have great potential, yet lack the teachers to really spur them on. That is mostly why I want a certain two someone's to teach."

Slightly smirking, Mokuba asked "Is that due that they beat you also?"

Growling at his brother, Seto replied "Don't tempt me to stick you in that box again."

Shuddering at the memory of the last time Seto stuck him in a box for a day, Mokuba put his hands up in a surrender stance and replied "Sorry…"

Smirking and then lightly chuckling, Seto said "It's alright. We'll see soon enough though if they deserve to be where I want them to be."

Looking back out the window, Seto then sat back down in his chair and said "We'll, I'll go ahead a reply to them, and then we have real work to do."

Nodding, Mokuba replied "Alright Seto."

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It was early May as a young couple was walking along a small clear lake. The two were holding hands, and was each enjoying the peace and quiet. The sunlight was shining down, glittering off the pair of silver wedding bands the two each had.

The young man with loose mid-back length brown hair, dark brown eyes, and an average body was simply smiling. He wore a pair of dark blue jeans, a white undershirt with an unbuttoned blue shirt overtop, and a pair of white tennis shoes.

The young woman walking along with him with her hand in his had mid-back length brown hair bound in a pony tail, light brown eyes, and a nice body. She wore a pair of light blue jeans, a brown peasant shirt, and a pair of white tennis shoes. She simply smiled at the young man and clung tightly to his hand.

"It's been nearly ten years…" the young man said in a happy voice that sounded like he was in total bliss.

"Yes, it has. Ten wonderful years that I wouldn't trade for the world." the young woman replied.

The two smiled as they continued to walk. They then found a small bench along the lake and sat down.

Smiling, the young woman said "Why is it we always seem to find our way to this bench each time we always go for a walk or one of us is mad at the other?"

Shrugging, the young man replied "I guess this bench has always been our safe haven. During the good and the bad, it's been here for us to work our problems out. Maybe today is just our goodbye to it."

Lightly chuckling, the woman said "So, we're saying goodbye to a bench now?"

Smirking, the young man replied "Why not? It's unofficially a part of our family."

This caused the young woman to laugh as she stood back up, pulling the young man with her. She then glanced down at the bench once more and said "Well, farewell for now old bench. We'll always treasure the memories we have sitting on you…"

"And making out on you." the young man added as the young woman smacked him playfully on the shoulder.

Shaking her head, the young woman said "I'm sorry for his comment. Don't take it personally… Why am I talking to the freaking bench!?"

"Because… I have no answer for that one. Why are you?" the young man questioned playfully.

Sighing, the young woman then grabbed the young man's hand and shook her head. The two then walked off as the gentle breeze began to pick up.

Smiling at the young woman, the young man said "Just a few more days till graduation. Are you ready to begin life out there?"

Lightly giggling, she replied "I'm always ready as long as I have you with me."

Proceeding to stop walking, and gently taking the young woman in his arms, the young man said "With you by my side, Marie, I'm ready for anything the world has in stored for us."

Smiling back at him, Marie said "And whatever is in stored for us, I know I'll always love you, Illidan."

"I shall always love you as well Marie." Illidan said as the two's lips were slowly coming closer and closer.

The two then kissed for a moment as the wind blew about, throwing strands of Illidan's hair into it. When they separated, the two stared into one another's eyes, each seemingly knowing what the other was thinking. The two then walked hand in hand back towards the apartment that they lived in.

For six years now, they had shared a single apartment. Even though neither had had a job, they had not gone without money. When applying for college, the two had each applied for scholarships, and each received the same one from Industrial Illusions. Both knew it had been Pegasus in other words trying to help them out. He had paid for their schooling, as well as money to live on.

Picking up the mail from the small lobby area, the two then made their way into their apartment. Once in, Illidan sat the mail down on the kitchen table and began to sort through it.

"Bill, bill, coupons! Hurray, coupons for Tide! Yes, Tide, the one laundry detergent to RULE THEM ALL!" he said sarcastically, making Marie lightly growl.

It was the millionth time in the last year or so he had said this. He had gotten it off of a flash video, titled _**One Ring to Rule Them All 3**_. Once and a while, it would make Marie laugh, but sometimes, it just downright annoyed her, and Illidan knew it.

Walking over, she said with a tint of irritation in her voice "Why don't you try reading off the real mail!"

Nodding in fear, Illidan then said "Let's see, we have a REAL bill, a letter from Pegasus, a letter from Yugi, another bill, and finally a letter from… I don't believe it!"

Looking at what he was staring at, Marie slightly gasped at it as well. There was a letter from Kaiba Corp, addressed to both Illidan and Marie. "He wouldn't dare write us, would he?" she asked curiously.

Smirking, Illidan replied "Doubtful he personally wrote us. Knowing Kaiba, he probably had Mokuba write it. Maybe we should frame it!"

Smiling back, Marie shrugged, saying "Never know, and no, no framing letters, yet…"

"True. Anyways, let's find out." Illidan said as he pulled out a small letter opener.

After a moment, Illidan pulled the letter out from the envelope and began to read aloud. "Yo dorks, me and Mokuba shall be at your graduation in a few days. Be there, or you'll regret making me waste my time. Seto Kaiba."

Chuckling, Illidan said "Oh joy, he's coming after all. And here I thought for once we wouldn't have to put up with his annoying attitude."

Laughing at Illidan, Marie replied "Ah, come on, he's not that bad. He's changed a good bit actually since he finally awakened to his ancient memories."

Sighing, Illidan nodded and said "True. At least he's not saying 'It's a trick! There isn't any such thing as magic!' I always loved hearing him say that, even though you knew he was completely off his rocker."

Marie only smiled at this and lightly chuckled, but replied "Well, at least he's coming. That means the whole gang will be there. We got a letter from Yugi and his friends saying they'd be there, and then there is Blue and Vash. Also, I got a letter back from Pegasus, also Bakura too. Shadi will even be there with Ishizu, and I figure they'll bring Marik and Odion too. I guess most of the old Shadow Court will be reunited once again. Of course, there are two exceptions…"

"One of which no one really cares is gone." Illidan added with a tint of anger.

Sighing lightly, Marie replied "Yeah, I don't think anyone will ever miss Gozaburo. I wish things could have been different though…"

Taking her into his arms in an embrace from behind, Illidan softly replied "As do I, but we can't change the past, nor change people who don't wish to change."

Nodding, she gripped his hand that was embracing her, and then sadly said "I only wish Yami was able to come to our graduation… He'd be so proud of us."

Nuzzling her neck gently, Illidan softly said "I know he would be. I wish he could come as well, but we both know he has finally been laid to rest. His spirit is in a far better place."

Sadly nodding, Marie replied "Yeah, and I'm thankful for that, but still, I miss him. He was so much like a brother to me."

Sighing himself, Illidan said "Yes, he was, and he was like one to me. I miss him daily, but try not to let it bother you. He's finally able to rest, so let's let him rest. He'd want us to be happy, and not be sad all our lives due that he's gone again."

Resting her head back against Illidan's chest, Marie lightly smiled and in a slightly happier tone said "You're right. We should be happy he's finally able to rest after five millennia. After all, he was trapped in the puzzle all those years. Now he has a chance to fully rest with all the other pharaohs of the past."

Illidan slightly growled at this, but Marie knew why. "I doubt Raijin went there Illidan."

Still softly growling, Illidan then stopped and sighed, leaning his head on hers. "I guess you're right. Just every time I think about Raijin, I think about the sacrifice my father made to save me from him. My father deserved better than that, but Raijin cruelly ended his life due to his own cowardly fear. Raijin got what he deserved in the end, but still, it's sad to know what it took to bring him down."

"I know Illidan, but we have to remember that the pharaoh that followed was one of the kindest people to ever lead the people. Yami corrected the wrongs his father inflicted upon the people, and did his best to help heal everyone's hearts. I think if not for Yami, Egypt would have been lost long ago." Marie said with kindness in her voice.

Illidan lightly smiled, and then asked "How did we get this far off of the subject of graduation?"

Lightly chuckling, Marie shrugged and moved out of Illidan's embrace and turned to face him, saying "I'm not sure. But let's not worry about the past. As Seto has so often said, the past is the past. Let it remain as it was."

Nodding, Illidan then rested his forehead on Marie's, saying "You're right."

The two then looked each other in the eye and slowly, their lips locked. After breaking away from a long and deeply passionate kiss, Marie smiled as mischief danced in her eyes. She then turned and went to leave the room. She slowly went slinking towards the staircase that led to their bedroom. As she ascended the steps, Illidan saw her peasant shirt fall to the floor of the steps, and soon saw a pair of jeans come tumbling down the stairs.

Smiling devilishly as he walked towards the stairs to go to the bedroom, Illidan said aloud "Well, I guess I know what that little vixen has in mind."


	2. Chapter 2: The Offer

**Hey everyone! Well, I must say, the first chapter of this sequel seems to have gone over very well, so thank you all. It means a lot that a bunch of people have decided to follow my story.**

**So then, as everyone saw, this story takes place ten years after Yami passed over to the land of the Pharaohs. Now, Illidan and Marie are graduating college at long last, and apparently Seto has some kind of plans for them. Lol, and Pegasus is his usual happy annoying self with Kaiba.**

**Ok, I've waited several months for this, so here goes. It's review time! Turns on review music.**

**ardee: Wow, you was the first reviewer! Congrats on that, lol. Yes, this story is suggestive, hence why I did add a T rating, although I think K+ would have possibly covered it. I'm glad you think it was worth the wait. I hope it really was for everyone. So yes, Kaiba wants Illidan and Marie to teach. Will it happen though, eh, who knows? Me of course, lol. Ok, to answer question one, no, Yami is not making a return to the mortal realm. He's dead, and not coming back to life. Of course, does that mean someone can't go to him, eh, I don't know, lol. As for your question two, I did include the characters more into this story. See, The Wolves Seal was different for the reason it was Illidan's side of the story, with him and his crew on their own. Eventually, the characters did mingle, but it just took time. I hope that answers your questions.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Thanks. Like I said, I figured T would be most appropriate. Lol, I didn't know if the Tide joke would work or not. Not everyone would understand I figured. But thanks for the comments.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thank you, and I'm glad as well to return with it. I had hoped to finish sooner and begin posting earlier last month, but I got lazy and didn't finish, sadly. Lol, I don't blame you on getting anxious. I've been anxious to post it, so to subdue that, I posted the one-shots instead, hehe.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Sure did. If my mate (wife) ever wrote anymore, you'd have a small story that talked about an incident during that time period, but oh well, lol. Ha ha, poor Ryon got older fast. Why did you kill the poor girl's grandma again?**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Lol, if Illidan was anything like the author of this story (me), he'd tell Kaiba where to stick his job offer. We'll see about freaking out, hehe.**

**Ok, well, that's it for this review session. Five reviews is a great start, so thank you all. I look forward to all the future ones.**

**Ah yes, one important piece of info. I will probably for a while be posting 2 chapters a week rather than my usual 3. This is till I fully finish this story. I'm nearly done writing it, but I don't want to run out of chapters prior to that. Don't worry, the story isn't too short, but currently, it's nearly equal to the length of TWS, but I have work to do yet on it.**

**At any rate, everyone enjoy this chapter.**

**Chapter 2**

After many boring speeches made by different deans, students, and other school officials, the handing out of diplomas began. With each name called, the list became shorter and shorter.

A young man with mostly black spiky hair, a pink band on the outside of his spiky hair, and golden bangs sat and watched and waited. His violet eyes watched carefully, mostly watching for two specific people. He had on a white dress shirt with a blue blazer coat, and a pair of blue jeans. The young woman beside of him, whom was holding his hand, had brown shoulder length hair and blue eyes. She was wearing a pink cherry blossom sleeveless dress with white dress shoes.

Seeing that the young man was looking hard, she smiled and said "Calm down Yugi. I'm sure they're in there."

Looking at the woman, Yugi replied "I know Tea, but I just wish I could see them."

Two young men beside of the couple lightly chuckled, as one with sandy blonde hair that was semi rough looking, but was tamed down, that also had brown eyes, just glanced down the row at his friend. He was wearing a white dress shirt as well, but had a black undershirt showing through it, and wore black jeans. The other young man had an odd brown haired hair cut, that was mostly shaped like a fry cook's hairdo, and he had brown eyes as well. He wore a brown unbuttoned shirt with a white undershirt and had black jeans on as well.

Smiling at his friend, the sandy blonde haired guy said with a New York accent "Don't worry about it Yug. They'll be in there, I guarantee it."

"Yeah, and you know how good Joey's guarantee's are. They're about as good as an HP computer from Wal-Mart." the brown haired young man said from beside Joey.

Growling loudly, Joey said semi loudly "Tristan, I should knock you into next week for that comment!"

"Quiet you geeks." Seto said from behind them, whom had on his usual white coat with black leather attire.

Mokuba only shook his head, as he was wearing a more formal outfit, which consisted of a green buttoned up shirt with cream colored pants. "_Why Seto couldn't dress up for once, I still don't know!_" he thought silently in his mind.

Smiling at the squabbling, a man with silver hair that reached his shoulders and was wearing a maroon colored suit with a white flowery collar and sleeves with a black string bow tie chuckled. "Do you always have to be so grumpy Kaiba-boy?" he said with sarcasm.

Glaring at the man, Seto replied "Shut up Pegasus. I didn't come this far to be insulted by you."

The silver haired youth with brown eyes, whom was sitting next to Tristan, only lightly chuckled. He had on a light blue buttoned up shirt and wore light grey pants. Both him and the young man beside him, whom looked almost exactly the same except for their eye colors and one had a darker shade grey hair, both looked at one another and smiled, each rolling their eyes.

"Bakura, will those guys ever grow up?" the young man asked that had slightly darker grey hair with green eyes. He had a green buttoned up shirt and wore grey pants also.

Smiling, Bakura replied "Vash, you know those guys will never grow up. They'll be a hundred and still fighting my dear brother."

Both smiled at one another as Vash felt a small squeeze on his right hand. He turned to see a pair of icy blue eyes belonging to a beautiful young woman with tan skin and short brown hair. She was wearing a blue dress that had sleeves that went all the way to her arms, and the dress length went to right above her knees. She wore black leather boots that came up to the top of her calves.

Smiling at the woman, Vash then leaned over and lightly kissed her cheek and whispered lightly in her ear, letting his hot breath make her slightly tremble. "Enjoying yourself, my dear Blue?"

Pulling back, Blue smiled at Vash and whispered in his ear "Yes, and if you don't stop that, I'll have to punish you when we get home."

Vash lightly smirked at this and just grasped her hand a little more. Behind the two were four more people, each with tan skin. The first was a young man whom had white shoulder length hair and blue eyes. He wore large golden earrings in his ears and was wearing a white dress shirt with black slacks. The one beside of him wore had a long black pony tail that was just off of the back of his head and had golden eyes. He had an odd tattoo on his face that went down most of the left side of it. He wore a purple shirt with black pants. Beside of him was a young woman with black mid-back length hair and had blue eyes. She wore a simple long sleeved white dress that went to her feet. Her hand was resting in the man beside of her, whom had a white turban to cover his head. His green eyes seemed to be searching much like Yugi had. He wore a brown shirt with black pants.

Ignoring the others in front of them, the white haired youth asked "Can any of you all see them yet?"

Turning to the white haired one, the black haired young man with a pony tail replied "No, I've yet to see them Master Marik."

Sighing, Marik then replied "Odion, for the millionth time, you don't have to call me Master anymore. You're my brother, maybe not by blood, but you are still my brother, so call me Marik."

The woman lightly giggled and said to Marik "You know he'll never get used to saying that."

Odion slightly nodded, and Marik replied "I know... Oh well, but anyways, can you see them yet Ishizu?"

Ishizu looked once more, and finally shook her head. The young man beside her squeezed her hand and said "Don't worry, we'll see them my dear."

Smiling at him, she replied "I know Shadi, but it's hard to stay patient."

Lightly chuckling, Shadi said "Patience is a virtue that few do have. Just remain calm. Illidan and Marie will be seen soon, I'm sure."

As if by response, they then heard the dean say "Next, graduating with honors with a Master's Degree in Egyptian History is Illidan Stormrage."

The entire group smiled and cheered as they watched the young man walk down the isle to receive his diploma. He shook the dean's hand and then went back to his seat.

Soon enough, the dean then said "Next, graduating with honors as well with a Master's Degree in Mathematics, Marie Stormrage."

Again, the group stood and cheered on as they watched the young woman walk down the isle to accept her diploma. The dean smiled and handed it to her, allowing her to return to her seat.

The rest of the names were finally all called out, and the ceremony was over. As the crowds cleared out, the group of friends found both graduates waiting.

Smiling, Illidan warmly said "Hey guys, it's great to see you all again!"

All of the group except Mokuba and Seto moved in and congratulated each with a hug and handshake, complimenting the two of them on their achievement.

At long last, Seto stepped forward and cleared his throat, saying "If the dork squad is now done congratulating you, I'd like to personally congratulate you as well."

Seto extended his hand to Illidan, who smiled and shook it, saying "Thank you Kaiba. I'm glad you came."

Letting a small smile grace his face, Seto nodded and then said "Now that that is over, I'd like to invite you and Marie to Kaiba Corp. on Monday. I have something I need to discuss with the two of you."

Slightly curious as to what Seto wanted, Illidan nodded, and replied "Very well, we'll be there."

Slightly smiling again, Seto then turned and said "Come on Mokuba, let's go home."

The two brothers then left, leaving the entire group pondering what Seto was up to. Everyone eventually shrugged it off and continued to enjoy one another's company. Eventually, the group went out to eat and finally said their goodbyes, leaving the couple alone to celebrate the day together in private.

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After celebrating the rest of the weekend away together, Illidan and Marie woke up Monday morning and caught a train to Domino. There, they would visit Seto.

Before leaving home, Illidan called ahead and asked if this was a serious event and if both needed to be dressed up. Mokuba had answered the phone, and told him to just come casually. There was no pressure in clothing type.

With this information, Illidan had chosen to wear blue jeans with his favorite button up black shirt that had a flame red dragon on it, but he didn't have it completely buttoned up. He also had on a white undershirt. As usual, he carried his deck holder on his belt and his backpack on his back, just in case he ran into Yugi or one of the others while visiting Domino. He wore his hair down as usual, allowing it to freely float however it chose to.

Marie had decided to be semi dressy, and wore a brown ruffle skirt that came down to her mid-thigh. She also wore a tan t-shirt, and decent matching brown shoes. Like Illidan, she let her hair hang freely, not caring really if it did blow all over the place when the wind gusted.

The two soon found themselves standing outside of Kaiba Corp., mostly just looking at it. Smiling at Marie and taking her hand in his own, Illidan pushed forward, intent on finding out what Seto wanted with the two of them.

Both of them walked into the front lobby and walked over to the check in desk. After explaining why they were there, they were told kindly by the lady behind the counter to go to the top floor.

After getting onto the elevator, Illidan let out a sigh of relief and closed his eyes, trying to sense if there was any real danger. "_Knowing Kaiba, he'd never purposely put us into a trap, but I just want to make sure._"

Using what was remaining of his Shadow Powers, he stretched out with his senses and scanned the building for any dangers. Finally sure that nothing was wrong, he let out a small sigh of relief.

"Why were you checking for Shadow Powers?" Marie asked, slightly disturbing him.

"Just making sure we don't have any kind of trouble here. You never know, someone could have put him up to it, but I doubt they could really. Seto has an iron will, not to mention his heritage keeps him from being controlled more than likely." Illidan replied.

Marie only flashed a smile at him and shook her head, saying "You're so silly."

Illidan was about to reply when suddenly the elevator stopped at the top floor. The doors opened and the two walked out, hand in hand.

They quickly noticed a secretary in front of a large set of doors. She looked up and smiled at the two, saying "I see that you two have arrived. Mr. Kaiba told me to alert him when you arrived."

She then picked up her phone and pushed a button. After a moment, she said "Mr. Kaiba, the two guests you told me about are here. Shall I let them in?"

A moment of silence was then heard and she nodded, saying "I will sir."

The secretary then hung up the phone and stood up. She quickly walked over to the front of the two doors and pulled one open, saying "He will see you now."

Illidan thanked the lady and walked in with Marie holding his hand still. Slowly, they crossed a large room to where a desk set before the windows. In a large red office chair sat Seto Kaiba with his elbows propped up on his desk and his head resting on his wrists.

"Hey guys!" came a happy voice. Looking over, Illidan and Marie saw it was Mokuba with a happy smile on his face.

"I'm glad you two made it. I was afraid you wouldn't almost." Seto said with his usual irritated tone.

He was wearing a purple trench coat, with a black shirt underneath, as well as black pants. As usual, his hair and clothing was in classic good shape.

Seto then motioned for both Illidan and Marie to take a seat in front of his desk. The two sat down, staring right at Seto.

Smiling, he said "Well, I'm sure you both are curious as to why I brought you here."

Both nodded and Seto leaned back into his chair and closed his eyes for a moment. Finally, he reopened his eyes and smiled softly, which was something that neither Marie nor Illidan were used to.

"As you know, both of your degrees were paid for by a scholarship that was setup by Pegasus. Well, I brought you here today to tell you it was not Pegasus who actually paid for you schooling. It was me that did it."

Marie lightly gasped while Illidan asked "Why?"

Lightly chuckling at the mixed reactions, Seto then said calmly "After all we had been through, and due to the fact we are old acquaintances, I thought it was only fair that you had a chance to make it through school without having to struggle through with work and school."

"Now you're just plain all out lying Seto. I know you, and you don't do something unless it could suit your plans down the road, so it's not that you decided to do this from the bottom of your heart for the both of us." Illidan said with calmness.

Seto only smirked and replied "You know me too well Illidan."

He then stood and pushed the chair aside and turned to look out the window. It was a beautiful day out, with bright sunshine and warm temperatures outside.

After a few long moments, Seto finally said "I'll be completely honest with the two of you. Ten years ago, as you know, we went our separate ways, but I kept an eye on the two of you. I learned about six years ago that the two of you were applying for college, and that you were applying for scholarships. So, I setup a scholarship for the two of you, but I disguised it, making Pegasus apparently the one who was sponsoring it."

Taking a moment to turn back to face the two, Seto then said "The reasoning doesn't matter now, but what I'm going to ask you does. Illidan, I understand you are looking for work where you can teach Egyptian History, correct?"

Illidan nodded, and finally said "Yes, I wish to teach what I know. Most of what I learned in college, I knew already due that I came from that time period. Still, what does that matter to you?"

Smirking, Seto replied "It matters a great deal to me, due that I wish to offer you a job at teaching at Duel Academy."

This about made Illidan fall out of his chair, but he somehow remained in it. "You what!?" he asked in shock.

Seto only laughed at the reaction and said "You heard me. I want to hire you to teach at Duel Academy. It's not just due to your credentials as a teacher, but due to your dueling skills as well. You see, the head of the Slifer Dorm, Professor Banner, vanished at the end of this year, hence leaving a void at the dorm. So, I wish to replace him with you. You will be the new head of the Slifer Dorm, and a teacher of history as well. As well, you'll be helping in teaching the young duelists some in developing their dueling skills. I figure who better than you, the mighty Illidan Stormrage, who even defeated the King of Games."

Illidan smirked at the comment, but then replied "I'll take the job on one condition."

Slightly glaring at Illidan, Seto irritably said "You know I could deny you the job if you're going to start making demands right off the bat."

Lightly chuckling, Illidan replied "It's not a big request, and it's one well worth your time. I'll take the job only if you offer Marie a job as well."

Marie slightly gasped and looked at Illidan in shock. "_He'd risk a job on getting me one with him as well? Has he lost it!?_"

Her thoughts were quickly interrupted though, as she heard Seto laughing. Looking at him, she saw that he was having a good laugh, but not his usual maniacal laughter. This was genuine humor laughter, for once.

"I should have thought as much. Of course she can have a job as well. I knew you'd ask, that is why I didn't bother to tell you that to start with. Of course, there is one condition for the two of you getting this job." Seto said slyly.

Raising an eyebrow, Illidan asked "That is?"

Smirking, Seto replied "You have to duel for the positions."

"Huh?" was all Illidan could say.

Lightly chuckling, Seto said once more "You have to duel me to get the jobs. You owe me a rematch Illidan, and it's time to pay the piper."

"Rematch? When did I promise you a rematch?" Illidan asked as he scratched his head, trying hard to remember the promise.

"You promised it to me before the end of the Tournament of Power, again after we defeated Dartz, and once again after Yami was put to rest. Really, you should start writing these things down." Seto replied in annoyance.

After a moment, Illidan then remembered his three promises and sheepishly grinned, rubbing the back of his head, saying "Oh yeah, I did promise, didn't I."

Sighing, he then said "A promise is a promise, so I guess it's time I pay up."

"Indeed it is Illidan. Are you ready then?" Seto said as he pulled a briefcase out of his desk.

"Actually," Marie interrupted said as she stood up. As she was, she smoothed out her skirt, and then said "Why don't you take me on Seto?"

Seto slightly sweat dropped and replied gruffly "Why would I waste my time with you?"

Growling slightly, Marie then replied in a cocky voice "Afraid of me now? After all, I beat you once in the past, not to mention once in the present. Afraid to find out if I'll beat you again?"

Seto only coughed and looked the other way, and slowly mumbled "Uh, no, just that I want the duel Illidan promised me. That's all."

Lightly giggling, Marie then turned to Illidan, and asked "Are you going to take him on, or should I have a go at it?"

Smirking, Illidan was about to say something when he saw Seto glaring at him. After a moment of silent laughter in his head, Illidan finally replied "No, I'll take him on. No need to embarrass him completely today."

Marie only innocently giggled as Seto clenched his fist and tried hard to keep from letting his temper boil over. Mokuba only chuckled in the corner, but got a death glare from Seto, letting him know that if he didn't shut up, it was box time more than likely.

Finally, things were under control, and Illidan said "Lead the way Seto."

The four then left the office through the two big double doors. As they were heading for the elevator, Seto said to the secretary "Hold all my calls for now."

She nodded and the four then jumped into the elevator. After the four left, she smiled and said "I'm glad he's happy today."


	3. Chapter 3: The Long Awaited Duel, Pt 1

**Hey everyone! Well, this past weekend was pretty cool. I got to go see **_**Transformers**_** at the theatre, and it didn't disappoint me one bit. I found it to be rather excellent, and I can't wait till it comes out on DVD.**

**Life otherwise is pretty cool. My mate and I are still getting along through it, even though her job keeps her busy. Btw, I don't think I ever mentioned it, but she got a little job around close by to just have something to do. I used to work there last year, and I like I keep reminding her, she'll find something more permanent in time.**

**Ah yes, this week is going to be so awesome. I get to go see some friends I met online back when I started playing Yugioh this weekend. I've met one of the group previously two years ago, and he'll be there again, so this should a pretty sweet time. feels like Jaden momentarily Lol, but I leave for this cool weekend on Friday, so no worries about the chapter not getting posted.**

**Well, last time, Illidan and Marie both graduated from graduate school. Seto of course had something in mind for the two, which was a job. The question is, can Illidan win the jobs in the duel? That shall soon be found out!**

**For now though, queue the review music!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Lol, that's alright. I understand, sometimes I can't think of anything to say either, lol. My 4****th**** of July was alright. I went with my step mom to visit her family, who had a cookout. It was a good time overall. That sucks to be stuck on a plane. I haven't flown in forever, and don't miss it that much either, lol.**

**x-knight20: Yep, the old gang is somewhat back together. Yeah, it wasn't a freak out, just a calm gathering.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: I haven't heard from you in forever! Lol, but thank you for your comments. We'll see about the tag team dueling, hehe. I've been doing writing, but it's been slow. Sometimes I'm in the mood to write a chapter or two a day, and others I just suck at getting anything close to resembling a chapter. As for my choice of stage, yeah, DA is different, but I figured they had done everything else in the show, so there was a need to move onto new grounds. The GX crew may pick something up from Illidan and Marie, you never know. Lol, yes, ten years of marriage hasn't changed a thing between the two. They're still the same old pair. growls I'm not a doggy-man! I'm a half dog demon, not doggy-man! Got it!?**

**Isis the Sphinx: Lol, yes, I could have embarrassed Kaiba a little more I suppose, but I figured I'd give him a break. After all, he was embarrassed enough at the thought of a rematch with Marie. Yeah, I'm trying to put more humor into this story, along with other aspects that I thought I'd try. Yep, the Harry Potter movie is coming out soon. My mate was excited originally when she found out the date, but now she's not as interested. sighs at confusing mate. Lol, yes, it's a busy summer. Cool that your birthday is in a little over a week. I just turned 24 in May, and I'm still pondering where 21 went, lol.**

**ardee: Thanks. Yes, they're having their long overdue rematch. We'll see about Seto winning. Never know, Seto could pull an upset victory… or not, lol. Time will tell. As for BESD, who knows. He probably took it out of his deck long ago due to the impossibility of summoning it. It's like impossible, lol. True about the Sacred Beasts naming convention. I never could understand why they called them sacred. From what I saw of them, they were evil, aka, no good period, that we know of that is. We'll see though. Maybe there is a reason they're evil.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Thanks. Lol, Ryon, you know it wasn't me. I could never do anything evil. swipes a sucker from a baby and hands it to Ryon. Ryon, why did you steal that kid's candy!? Shame on you! Lol, evil palm trees? sighs Ryon, maybe it's time we took you back to the nuthouse.**

**Ok everyone, that's it for my reviews. I'm still working on finishing up this story, but for now, I have plenty of chapters to post, so long as I don't post like a million a week, lol. Hopefully I'll finish in the near future. I just keep getting involved in so many things that I rarely get time to write unfortunately. Plus, I keep having ideas for my next fan fic. I need to just focus on this story. realizes he's rambling. Oops, lol.**

**Anyways, I hope you all enjoy this chapter. Till next time!**

**Chapter 3**

The four took a silent, short trip in the elevator to the top of the building. Once reaching the top, the four stepped out to a dueling field.

"So, you expected me to say yes I take it?" Illidan said slyly.

Grinning, Seto replied "Naturally. I knew you wouldn't break a promise, plus you never back down from a challenge. It was a given that this duel was going to happen."

Slightly smirking at Seto's attitude, Illidan continued to walk forward towards the middle of the field. Marie walked along side of him silently, but still clasped his hand.

The four finally reached the center as a small gust of wind blew up. Illidan's hair danced in it for a moment before it fell back to it's usual place. Looking at Seto, Illidan noticed that for once, he seemed rather peaceful, which was just odd to him.

"_I've not seen him smile like he is since ancient times. Is it possible he's finally learned to enjoy himself?_"

Setting down his briefcase, Seto slowly undid the locks. Before opening it, he glanced up at Illidan, saying "You did bring your Duel Disk, right?"

Nodding, Illidan simply replied "Of course I brought it! I didn't count on dueling you, but I planned on being prepared just in case I saw the others."

Smirking back, Seto opened his briefcase and pulled a different looking Duel Disk out. He then tossed it to Illidan, who wasn't expecting Seto to chuck something at him, but expertly caught it.

Looking over the new Duel Disk, he raised an eyebrow as Seto said "That's one of Duel Academy's new Duel Disks. These Duel Disks are far more superior to the ones we used to use. The graphics are far more advanced, and they are more physical than the previously used versions. I made them so the students would get a real thrill out of dueling. That one is for you to keep, if you can beat me."

Nodding, Illidan smiled at Seto as he strapped the Duel Disk on. Seto proceeded to pull another Duel Disk out of his briefcase and then strapped it on as well. He then reached into his coat pocket and pulled out his deck.

Illidan followed suit and pulled his deck from his deck holder on his belt. He then walked up to Seto and handed his deck to him. Seto did the same for Illidan, and both began to shuffle in silence. At last, both finished and handed back each others deck.

Surprisingly, Seto then offered a hand to Illidan, saying "Good luck Illidan."

Smiling back, Illidan extended his own hand and said "Good luck to you too Seto."

The two then took their respectful decks and stuck them in their Duel Disks. They each then turned away from one another and began walking towards the opposite sides of the long field. Marie and Mokuba quickly took the hint that they were ready and quickly moved off the field.

At long last, both Illidan and Seto reached the end of the field simultaneously and turned to face one another. Both smiled at one another, each enjoying the moment before the preverbal calm of the storm.

After a long moment, the two then held out their left arms, as the two Duel Disks powered up. The blade like design slid out slightly, and the internal blade shot outwards. The lights on each disk then came to life as the life point counters quickly rose to 8000 points.

"I've been waiting a long time for this Illidan." Seto said with a calm, but excited voice.

Closing his eyes for a moment, Seto then smiled and opened his eyes once more with happiness shining from them. "Ten years ago, I couldn't wait to duel you, and in all this time, I still can't yet wait. You know, you were the second person since Yami to really create a rivalry that picked away at me."

Smiling once more, Seto stared up at the sky, saying "Back then, I dueled to prove myself, to prove I was the best of the best. Maybe that's why my fall was so great when I lost to Yami, and then once again when I dueled you."

Lightly chuckling as he continued to stare at the sky, he continued with "I was so full of anger, hatred, and jealousy that I couldn't see why I was losing. It wasn't due that my cards failed me, or to my lack of strategy. No, it was due that I didn't believe in what I was fighting for. Ten years ago, I finally learned that lesson, hence why for ten years I've desperately wanted to duel you."

Now looking straight at Illidan, Seto boldly said "For ten years now, I've dreamed of a duel with you again to show you that now I'm really ready to fight you. No longer do I duel like I used to, but now I duel like I should have. Now I duel with my heart, my soul, and my feelings! I duel now not to prove myself to the world, but to just test my strength, as well as to have fun. Yes, I just said fun before you ask."

Illidan only smiled at this and replied "Good to know that Seto, because I want to duel you for fun."

Smiling back, Seto nodded and said "Very good, because I don't intend on going easy on you Illidan. I plan on fighting you with all my very being!"

Both then drew their first five cards from their decks and Illidan called out "Time to cut loose and duel!"

Smirking slightly, Seto gingerly said "You can begin Illidan."

Smiling, Illidan drew his first card, saying "Why thank you Seto."

Looking his hand over, he saw he held Magic Cylinder, Apprentice Magician, Rapid-Fire Magician, Tsukuyomi, Silent Magician LV4, and his newly drawn Magical Blast. Smiling at his new cards, Illidan picked one card up and prepared his move.

"First, I'll start by summoning my Rapid-Fire Magician (1600/1200) in attack mode." A mage with long flowing purple hair, a black pair of leather pants, a short sleeved cloak with black flowing cloak, an odd black hat, and two black finger cut off gloves (one for each hand) then appeared. In each hand he held a staff with bird like claws, which clutched small orbs. To top it all off, around nine different colored spheres formed an arch around him.

Looking the new monster over, Seto lightly smirked, saying "A new monster I see. Very impressive Illidan."

Smiling back, Illidan only continued, saying "Thanks, but he's more than a pretty face. Why don't I show you now. I activate the spell card Magical Blast, which can only be activated when I possess a Spellcaster type monster on my field. Now thanks to this card, I can inflict 200 points of direct damage to your life points for each Spellcaster on my field, so take it away Rapid-Fire Magician!"

The mage's right staff began glowing brightly as he raised it and fired a powerful purple and pink striped sphere of energy at Seto. He was hit head on, but was hardly fazed.

"Next comes the fun part. Since I played a normal spell card, my mage's special ability is triggered. He now gets to deal you an additional 400 points of direct damage!"

This said, the mage smirked and raised both staffs. Both glowed brightly as several new spheres of light appeared. They then began to rapidly flash across the field, each striking Seto head on, making him cover his face as he was pushed backwards slightly.

"Not bad at all Illidan. I see you've yet to lose your touch. And even more impressive is the fact you're playing a completely different strategy than the one I'm used to seeing you play." Seto said with remarkable calmness.

Nodding, Illidan only calmly replied "There's more to come Seto, but for now, I'll place one card face down and end my move." (Illidan 8000, Seto 7400)

Drawing his card, Seto smiled and said "It's time I show you what I've got now Illidan. First, I begin by playing my spell card Pot of Greed! This allows me to draw two new cards from my deck." A large green pot with a goblins face then appeared and let out a small laugh as Seto drew two new cards. As it's laugh ended, the pot shattered.

Looking over his cards, Seto called out "I now play the spell card White Dragon Ritual! By sending a monster or monsters that total four stars to the Graveyard, I can special summon a certain monster from my hand. So I'll send my Luster Dragon #2 to the Graveyard and special summon my Paladin of White Dragon (1900/1200) in attack mode!"

A white dragon with large golden eyes and large warrior on it's back with white armor, cape, and a powerful sword and shield then appeared on the field. The warrior had greenish skin, but his face was hidden by a helmet that covered all but his chin and mouth.

"As strong as this monster is, it's not enough to defeat you, so I'll now activate my monster's special ability. Now by sending him to the Graveyard, I can special summon one specific monster from my deck or hand to the field. Wanna guess which one it is?"

Rolling his eyes sarcastically, Illidan grumbled "I already know…"

Smirking, Seto replied "Right you are Illidan, you sure do know it! I now special summon from my deck the Blue-Eyes White Dragon (3000/2500) in attack mode!" With a flash of light, the warrior and dragon vanished, and a large, metallic looking white dragon appeared in it's place. It let out a loud roar as it stretched out it's mighty wings and bared it's teeth at Illidan.

Seeing this monster, Marie only glanced at Illidan with a worried look. "_With Blue-Eyes already out, Illidan is in trouble_"

Looking back to see Marie's worried look, Illidan only called out to her, saying "Don't worry, I'll be fine. That dragon is harmless this turn, right Seto."

Seton chuckled at this, and nodded, saying "True Illidan, he is harmless to you, for now. He can't attack due that I special summoned him using Paladin of White Dragon's effect, but there are more ways to use a Blue-Eyes than to attack with."

Not sure of what Seto was talking about, Illidan was about to ask when Seto interrupted, saying "I now play the spell card known as Burst Stream of Destruction!"

Unsure of what this card did, Illidan asked "What in the world does that thing do?!"

Seeing the confusing in Illidan's eyes, Seto lightly chuckled, saying "It's easy Illidan. You see, I can only activate this card when a Blue-Eyes White Dragon is out. Since one is, this card allows me to destroy all monsters on your side of the field! So now, Blue-Eyes, use your Burst Stream of Destruction to annihilate that mage!"

The mighty white dragon roared loudly as it opened it's jaws to reveal a large build up of white energy. In a flash, the dragon spat a powerful sphere of white energy at the black leather clad mage, who was struck head on, making him cry out in pain as he exploded into millions of pieces.

Illidan could only slightly growl at this, but remained calm. "_No worries, for I still have my face down._" he calmly reassured himself.

Seeing the ever cool persona of Illidan sticking, Seto smirked, saying smartly "By the way, my spell card does have an unfortunate effect. It keeps my Blue-Eyes White Dragon from attacking this turn. Ironic though, that my dragon already couldn't, yet he caused more destruction than you thought he could."

Still, Illidan didn't give in to Seto's taunting, which made Seto decide to kick things up. "Now, I play the spell card Heavy Storm! This spell card will now destroy all spell and trap cards on the field, so say bye bye to that face down card!" A powerful set of twisters then burst onto the field, each striking at the spell and trap cards zones in front of Illidan and Seto. One of the twisters then struck Illidan's face down, easily revealing it to have been Magic Cylinder.

"Not good…" Illidan said with a growl of frustration.

Lightly chuckling, Seto replied "You're right, that's not good at all for you, especially since I'm about to take this duel up to another level. I now summon a monster that will really put you in a bind. I summon Kaibaman (200/700) in attack mode!"

A human looking monster then appeared on the field. His attire consisted of black leather pants, a white trench coat, a long black sleeved shirt that ran down to his black spiked tipped gloves, a red vest, long butt length red hair that flowed freely behind him, and a white dragon shaped helmet that covered his head. The resemblance the monster bore of Kaiba was the most shocking thing of all though.

Seeing Illidan and Marie's surprised looks, Seto sarcastically asked "Quite the looker isn't he?"

"Where in the world did you get a card that looks like you!?" Illidan asked with his jaw slightly hanging open.

Chuckling, Seto replied "Simply put, I got it from Pegasus."

Looking at Seto carefully, Illidan asked "You mean you let him sketch you!?"

Seemingly getting embarrassed at this attention he was now getting, Seto turned halfway away from Illidan, replying "Yes…"

"That had to have been fun." Illidan teased.

Growling slightly, Seto then replied "It wasn't that fun…"

Flashing back in his mind to the day that Pegasus had called him about the card, he remembered that Pegasus had kept pushing for him to come pose for him.

"_No way in hell am I posing in front of you for some card!"_ _Kaiba had yelled angrily on the phone._

"_But Kaiba-boy, it's for a good cause. Come on, I just need you here for one day, then you can continue your boring little life at Kaiba Corp." Pegasus countered._

"_No!" was all was said back by Seto._

"_Kaiba-boy, do you even know what this card will do? It will tremendously help you and your deck if you allow me to sketch you."_

_Glaring at the video phone, Seto asked "What kind of effect?"_

Seto remembered that Pegasus had truly been right. The card's effect was a tremendous boost to his deck, and Seto had no choice but to accept. He shuttered at the memories of him posing for Pegasus while dressed up in the very same outfit. True, most of it was his original outfit he wore at Battle City and afterwards, but the helmet was added in, as well as the long red hair. After it was all said and done, Pegasus got the sketches he needed, and within a month, had a card ready for Seto.

Looking back up at Illidan, Seto finally said "I may have had to have put up with Pegasus's ridiculous sketching of me, plus his comments, but it was well worth it to get this monster. This monster will truly prove to be a thorn in your side."

"Wouldn't surprise me, seeing how he's you in disguise." Illidan joked.

"I wouldn't poke fun at Kaibaman just yet Illidan. Just wait till I use his effect. Now, I activate his special ability! By sacrificing him, I can special summon one Blue-Eyes White Dragon from my hand to the field, so rise up Blue-Eyes White Dragon (3000/2500) in attack mode!" called out Seto.

The Kaiba look-a-like vanished instantly as Seto slapped the new monster card to his Duel Disk. Instantly, another white metallic dragon appeared on the field, letting off a mighty roar as the first one had at Illidan.

"Illidan!" Marie said as she looked on in horror.

"_Two Blue-Eyes already. Man, this is not going well for me._" Illidan thought as he brooded over the fact he was now being outmaneuvered.

Lightly chuckling, Seto called out "Blue-Eyes White Dragon, direct attack Illidan's life points with White Lightning!"

The mighty dragon took flight and opened up it's powerful jaws. Lightning flicked within it's jaws as it drew out more and more power. Finally, the dragon spat a beam of white energy straight at Illidan, which easily struck him, forcing him to fall to one knee in pain.

Slow to stand, Illidan said "Well, I must admit, these new Duel Disks do pack a bit more of a punch in them. Still, that won't stop me from winning this duel."

Hearing this, Seto only chuckled and responded with "You think so huh? Well, let's see what you've got Illidan. I end my turn." (Illidan 5000, Seto 7400)


	4. Chapter 4: The Long Awaited Duel, Pt 2

**Hey everyone! This has been a crazy week so far. Monday, our group at work had four meetings throughout the day. The first wasn't bad, for it was just our staff meeting, which lasted ten minutes. The second was a business meeting, which lasted thirty minutes, and the other two were class like meetings. Each lasted an hour. Plus, it rained and rained Tuesday night through Wednesday evening. I'm not complaining about that actually, since we needed the rain. Wednesday, I found out about a project that I'm co-leading, which is pretty cool, although I'm a bit nervous I suppose. We also had two more meetings, one on a part of a site we upkeep, and the other another class. The first was thirty minutes, the other an hour. Also, I got to talk to my friend who lives in Kentucky, which I'm to visit tomorrow. Lol, she said our one friend actually exists, which I thought to myself, yeah, I guess he does. And today will be interesting when I get home. I have to finish packing, go shopping with my mate, spend time with my mate (a tough one, lol), and figure out what I'm forgetting to pack, lol. But this weekend should be fun, although I'm sure my mind will be far away at home with my mate.**

**So, last time, Illidan and Seto finally got things going. Seto is actually happy to be dueling Illidan as I'm sure many of you noticed. I know, it's a bit out of character, but I have a reason! Remember my one-shot that went with this trilogy? Well, in there, it mentioned Seto getting his past memories back when Yami was leaving. I figured it helped him mellow out, plus he had a lot of respect for both Illidan and Marie. And it's been ten years, which gives him time to take it easy, and learn to enjoy life. The question is, now that he's dueling for fun, can he beat Illidan?**

**Alright, time to get right down to my favorite part of posting. Reviews!**

**pink-kiss-candy: Yeah, he is enjoying himself for once. He got a bit nicer since the last time the happy couple met him. Ryon, how could you steal from children!? That's pretty low, even for you. gets old therapist that talked with Ryon before and tells her to help Ryon. Evil palm-trees, ha! Slashes tree Ryon said was evil. Finds nothing evil. Look you nut, nothing evil about it!**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Lol, yeah, I just figured I'd have Seto pose for the card. After all, he's the only one who could use it.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thank you. Yeah, he got sketched, by Pegasus no less. Lol, yeah, I had to do a lot of envisioning to get it to work out in my mind. Watching that episode of GX with Kaibaman over and over helped too, lol. Yeah, it looks like he learned that dueling for his ego wasn't the correct way. True, who knows if this duel will end the rivalry. Remember, Yami and Seto had rematch after rematch, yet it never ended. Lol, I've only been on a few planes, and that was when I was a kid. I hated it before I got on, but I got comfortable once I got on. Yes, Transformers was pretty good. My mate didn't like it due that she said it was predictable… Silly mate. Gets smacked in the back of the head by her. Never mind…**

**ardee: Yay, I had updated! Lol, and yay again, I'm updating once more! Yeah, the earlier chapters were a bit shorter, but the longer I've gone at this story, the longer the chapters got. I usually tried to keep them uniform in size, but some got way larger, lol. Yeah, my writing style has changed some. I was trying new ideas, hoping they might work. So far, they seem to be. Lol, I don't know about Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon. The probability of drawing it, getting Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon out are still pretty low. True, I had forgotten about Future Fusion helping though. Magical Merchant, eh, I guess could help, but could hurt too. I've seen some people hurt themselves with it, lol. Then again, I've been out of the game too long to really know how things work sometimes. My current, or last deck I should say, was a Warrior/Earth deck, although I didn't like it. I was going to overhaul it, but I got married, started writing more, and kind of lost interest in the game due that most of the people I used to duel retired. I still duel my mate though, and we have some interesting games with some fun rules, lol. My deck I use against her is a Machine/Warrior, or more like Vehicroid/Warrior deck. Don't ask me how that happened, lol. Most of it was made up of random cards I picked out, and part of a few structure decks. As for Anubis, heh, we'll see. Thanks again.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Lol, yes, big ego for Kaiba. Yeah, he's a bit OOC, but like I said, ten years changes a person, plus, he remembers and accepts the past now. It takes some getting used to him being different, I'm sure. That sucks about the allergies. Mine have flared up recently once more too. I don't know why. They just went from neutral to overdrive. But thank you for your comments.**

**Thank you everyone for your reviews. So far, I've had 16 reviews, which is just awesome. Btw, for anyone who has some comments, questions or criticism, don't be shy to tell me. I'm more than willing to answer any and all of the above.**

**Well, this is it for me this week. Hopefully, if I get to writing seriously again, I'll have this story fully wrapped up and can begin posting three chapters a week soon, but that's if I get serious. I've been more and more anymore, but I'm still not like super serious yet I guess.**

**For now though, everyone enjoy this chapter. I'm looking forward to the reviews I get for this chapter.**

**Chapter 4**

Preparing to draw, Illidan smirked, saying "I've got a surprise for you Seto. Instead of drawing a card, I'll activate the effect of a card I sent to my Graveyard last turn. Now I can add Magical Blast back to my hand instead of drawing a card."

Holding his hand over his Graveyard, the slot glowed momentarily. Finally, the slot pushed out the spell card, and Illidan quickly grabbed it up and placed it in his left hand with his other cards.

Snorting, Seto simply said "That card is useless to you right now Illidan. Why bother to bring that card back?"

Lightly chuckling, Illidan only replied with "That's for me to know, and you to guess. Now then, I'll next place one monster in defense mode, and end my turn." (Illidan 5000, Seto 7400)

Shaking his head, Seto let out an audibly loud sigh and drew his next card. "If you're going to duel me, duel me like you should Illidan. We both know that card is useless to you, so why you bothered to add it back to your hand, I don't know. Either way, it's still my move, so now, Blue-Eyes, attack his face down monster with White Lightning!"

The mighty white dragon roared loudly as it opened it's jaws. Lightning became visible within it's jaws, as well as a bright glow from it's throat. Finally, a stream of white energy came streaming out of the dragon's mouth, heading straight for the face down card image.

The card instantly flipped up to reveal a mage in a kneeling position. The mage had blonde hair that stood up somewhat, a red bandanna that was somewhat long in the back, purple body armor that covered it's body (other than it's arms), and had a green staff positioned defensively in front of itself.

Still, the beam of energy continued on, easily striking the mage, which cried out in pain as it was blown away. Illidan covered his face from the fierce wind that was blown up by the destruction of his monster, but then smirked.

"Thanks Seto, I was hoping you'd attack! Now thanks to your attack, Apprentice Magician (400/800) can use it's effect. I can now special summon a replacement Spellcaster type monster to the field in face down defense mode, but it has to be a level two or lower."

Sorting through his deck quickly, Illidan finally found a monster he wanted and then placed the card face down onto the field. Once done, he shuffled his deck back together and placed it back in it's deck slot.

Seto only slightly growled at this, but then smiled, saying "Playing defense won't stop me Illidan. Go my second Blue-Eyes, annihilate whatever monster he just played with White Lightning!"

The second white dragon roared loudly as it powered up. Opening it's jaws quickly, a stream of white energy went flying towards the face down monster card image. Instantly, like before, the card flipped up to reveal the same mage as before. Just as the last mage though, this one was easily blown away by the force of the attack.

Covering his face once more, Illidan then chuckled, saying "Thanks once more Seto. Once again, you've destroyed another Apprentice Magician (400/800), which means I can now special summon another level two or lower Spellcaster from my deck to the field in face down defense mode."

Again searching through his deck, Illidan finally found one and slapped the card to his Duel Disk, saying "This one should do."

Grumbling, Seto finally said "I'll place one card face down, ending my move." (Illidan 5000, Seto 7400)

Nodding, Illidan drew his next card and smirked. Flipping his card around to reveal it, Illidan called out "I start by playing my Pot of Greed, which means I can now draw two new cards from my deck!"

Picking up two new cards, Illidan smiled even more and placed the two back in his left hand. He then picked up the horizontal monster on his Duel Disk and flipped it up, calling out "It's time I show you what I placed on the field last turn. I flip summon my face down Old Vindictive Magician (450/600) in attack mode!"

An elder mage with orange like skin, grey hair that reached his shoulders, odd looking darker orange armor that formed some kind of hump on his back, a blue cape, and a green staff then appeared on the field. He only glared at the two dragons, letting off a "Feh."

"One of the things Old Vindictive Magician doesn't like is company, so I think I'll use his special ability to get rid of some of it. You see, when I flip summoned my mage, his ability kicked in, so now I can destroy one monster on the field, regardless of position. Old Vindictive Magician, take out one of those Blue-Eyes with Vindictive Judgment!"

The older mage only sneered at one of the white dragons and pointed his staff at that one. In a flash of green energy, a blast was let loose on a collision course with the white dragon that was picked. The dragon was struck head on, easily succumbing to the blast with a mighty explosion.

Seto could only let a small growl out of his throat at the sight of his destroyed dragon, but then glared back at the mage who had fired the blast.

"I'm far from done though Seto, for now I sacrifice my mage to summon Cybernetic Magician (2400/1000) in attack mode." A small flash appeared on the field as the older mage vanished, and a new mage clad in white appeared. He had a small pointed hat, a white and silver trench coat/robes, blue pants, white boots that went up to his knees, and a small l-shaped rod that had a small bit past the corner of the L size. His hair was blonde, and his skin tone was light green.

Lightly chuckling, Seto simply said "Your mage is a bit weak Illidan. He has no where near enough attack points to take on my Blue-Eyes."

Nodding, Illidan replied with confidence in his voice "True, but who said I had any intention on letting my mage be blown away. It's time I activate his special ability. By discarding one card from my hand, I can reduce the attack points of one monster on the field to 2000 for the duration of the turn. So, I send my Magical Blast to the Graveyard, and use the effect on Blue-Eyes! Go, use your Cyber Burst my mage!"

Twirling his staff around in front of his body and then in behind his body, the mage finally took aim with the blue stone tipped staff, releasing a burst of blue energy. The energy beam struck the white dragon, making it roar loudly as it lost some of it's strength (2000/2500).

Kaiba only softly growled as Illidan smiled at the reaction, but didn't give Seto a moment to think about it. Immediately, he called out "Cybernetic Magician, attack that dragon now with Cyber Scepter Blast!" The mage aimed his staff instantly at the dragon and let loose a blast of blue energy in a sphere at the dragon.

About halfway across the field, Seto lightly smirked and said "Sorry Illidan, but that won't work! I activate the trap card Negate Attack! Now this trap literally negates your attack and ends your Battle Phase. Nice try though."

A small black hole opened up on the field right in front of the white dragon. The black hole swallowed up the blast and then closed back up, as if nothing happened.

Sighing, Illidan picked a card from his hand, saying "In that case, I'll place this face down and end my turn. Since I'm ending my turn, your dragon's points return to normal (3000/2500)." (Illidan 5000, Seto 7400)

Seto calmly drew his next card and smirked at it, saying "I play the spell card known as Card of Demise! Now I can draw till I hold five cards in my hand, but in five turns, I must discard my entire hand."

In a single motion, Seto picked up five cards and studied them, then continued, saying "I now play Silent Doom. This spell card returns one of my monsters in my Graveyard to the field in defense mode, so I'll pick my Blue-Eyes White Dragon (3000/2500)!" The white dragon then reappeared on the field, letting out a mighty roar as it then hunched down and pulled it's wings into a defensive stance.

"Next I summon my Lord of Dragons (1200/1100) in defense mode." A mage in armor that looked like that of a black dragon then appeared on the field in a crouching position. He held his arms crossed in front of his body also, seemingly increasing his defense.

With a bit of swagger in his voice, Seto said "As you know Illidan, with Lord of Dragons out, no spell, trap, or monster effects can be used on my dragons, so tough luck. Now Blue-Eyes, attack that pathetic mage with White Lightning!"

The white dragon roared loudly as it stretched it's massive wings. In one massive beat of it's wings, the dragon was airborne and glared down at the white clothed mage. The dragon opened up it's jaws as white energy began to surge from it's throat. With ease, the dragon let loose a beam of pure white energy, which went surging towards the white mage.

Slightly smiling, Illidan called out "Don't think so Seto, for I have a spell card!"

Lightly chuckling, Seto interrupted, saying "Did you forget about my Lord of Dragons already!? You can't target my Blue-Eyes as long as he's out Illidan!"

Nodding, Illidan replied "True, but who said I'm targeting your dragon? Now, I reveal the spell card Magical Dimension!" A golden statue with a slit up the middle then appeared. The statue was supported by eight chains, with each chain connecting to a corner of a set of metal poles that formed a rectangle around the statue.

"This spell card can only be activated so long as I have a Spellcaster type monster on the field, and my Cybernetic Magician happens to be one. Now, I get to sacrifice one monster on my field, so now you see my mage, now you don't!" A red beam shot out from the golden statue, instantly pulling the mage within itself. As this happened, the blast from the white dragon smashed into the ground where the mage was standing, but the blast simply dissipated.

"Since my mage is now gone, your dragon had no target to hit, so you wasted your attack. Now for the second part of this trick. I get to special summon a new Spellcaster from my hand to the field in attack mode, so now replacing my missing Cybernetic Magician will be my Silent Magician LV4 (1000/1000)." A small mage in white robes with white gloves, blue boots, an odd white hat with a little blue on an ornament, blue spandex like material covering it's arms, and a small scepter then appeared on the field. The mage looked rather young, and had long silver hair.

"And now, for the grand finale for this trick. Magical Dimension now allows me to destroy one monster on the field."

Chuckling loudly, Seto said "Too bad my Lord of Dragons keeps you from targeting my two dragons. Nice try Illidan, but you failed to get rid of my dragons."

Slightly smirking, Illidan only replied with "True Seto, but I'm not going to target your dragons. My target is your Lord of Dragons himself!"

Seto immediately stopped laughing as he saw the statue slightly glowing. Without warning, a blast of red energy came pouring out and struck the dragon armored mage, who let out a mighty roar as he exploded into millions of pieces.

Trying hard to regain a grip on his emotions, Seto took a deep breath and then smirked, saying "You may have defeated my Lord of Dragons, but you're far from safe. I'll place one card face down to end my move." (Illidan 5000, Seto 7400)

Looking at his deck for answers, Illidan silently sighed and then drew his card. Knowing he needed a certain card to have a chance at surviving, he silently prayed he'd draw the right one.

Taking a glance at the card, Illidan flashed a smile instantly and stared at Seto, saying "I'm not through with you yet Seto! Now I play the spell card known as Level Up! By simply sacrificing my Silent Magician LV4, I can now special summon my Silent Magician LV8 (3500/1000) to the field in attack mode!"

The smaller white mage quickly began glowing brightly with white light. When the light died down, he had grown much taller, and appeared a bit older. His hair was now longer, but still held it's grey color. His body was as well more developed, and his powers had apparently grown as well, which he demonstrated by a soft crackling of energy in his left hand.

Seto only stared on, seemingly unafraid of the new mage, but Illidan figured he had a reason due to his face down. "_If I don't try it now, he could beat me. It's all or nothing now._"

"Silent Magician, attack his Blue-Eyes that's in attack mode with Silent Scepter Blast!" commanded Illidan.

The mage quickly leapt into the air and pointed his staff straight at the white metallic looking dragon. He then pushed power forward into his staff, causing a large white sphere of energy to form. With ease, the mage launched the blast towards the white dragon, which seemed unafraid of the oncoming blast.

Smirking, Seto held out his hand and called out "You should check your target more carefully Illidan! I reveal my face down spell card, Shrink! Now your monster's attack points are cut in half, making him much weaker than my dragon!"

Lightly chuckling, Illidan shook his head as he pointed to his mage. The spell card had fired a blast of energy straight for the mage's attack, but the blast was unaffected, as was the mage. Seto soon saw why, when he noticed the mage glowing white.

Seeing Seto saw this, Illidan called out "Sorry Seto, but you're spell card has no effect on my mage. You see, he's unaffected by all spell cards, which means his attack points will be staying the same. So say goodbye to your dragon!"

The blast then struck the white dragon, making it roar loudly as it shattered into many pieces, leaving only the other dragon in a defensive stance alone.

"I think I'll end my move at that, so give me your best shot Seto." (Illidan 5000, Seto 6900)

Smiling, Seto leaned forward and lightly laughed, saying "Very well done Illidan. This duel is turning out to be exactly what I was hoping for."

Opening his eyes back up, he then stared at Illidan with dark blue eyes full of determination, and continued saying "Still, I knew this wouldn't be easy. That's why I wanted this duel. I knew you'd push me further than anyone else could currently, and that's what I want! I want to see if I have what it takes to still stand toe to toe with someone like you! Now, watch this move!"

With a fluent motion, Seto drew his card and looked at it. His expression grew somewhat shocked, but in that moment, he only laughed, saying "It's time I take this duel up to the next level!"

Knowing what Seto was most likely talking about, Illidan felt a small sweat drop slip down his cheek. "_That can only mean one thing…_"

Pulling another card from his hand, Seto called out "I play the spell card Monster Reborn, and special summon from the Graveyard my Blue-Eyes White Dragon (3000/2500) in attack mode!" The mighty dragon let out a loud roar as it reappeared on the field in a mighty display.

"Next, I play the spell card Polymerization, allowing me to fuse my Blue-Eyes in my hand with the two on the field in order to summon my Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon (4500/3800) in attack mode!"

A third dragon appeared on the field and let out a loud roar. The three dragons then began to swirl together. A bright, blinding light then covered the field, making it impossible to continue watching. Seto only stood and watched with his arms crossed. Finally, the light died down as a large, white three headed dragon with massive wings and powerful clawed hands and feet descended onto the field. Each head then let out a mighty roar, making the building seemingly shake.

Marie only stared at the new monster in horror. "No way!" she said in a gasp.

Mokuba smiled and silently said "_That's the way Seto. Go show Illidan what you're really made of._"

Seto only smirked at Illidan as Illidan stared at the large dragon in front of him. "_I figured this would happen eventually, but not this early. There is no way I can take that dragon down yet. I need a plan, and fast!_"

The silence was quickly ended, with Seto cockily said "Amazed, right? Well, don't get too amazed Illidan, because here comes my dragon! Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, attack that mage with Neutron Blast!"

Each of the three heads of the dragon roared loudly as they opened up their jaws. White energy began to form in each of their throats and then filled their mouths. Lightning flared out from the energy as the dragons continued powering up. Finally, the three simultaneously released a blast of energy, with all three blasts twisting together into one large beam. The blast struck the white mage head on, who could do nothing but scream out in pain as his body quickly shattered from the blast. The remainder of the blast went flying back into Illidan, who slid backwards, but remained on his feet. As the blast cleared out, Illidan was slightly panting as he stood where the force of the blast had pushed him to.

Seto only sneered at his handy work and said "I think that's enough punishment for now Illidan. I'll leave my move at that, so go ahead and take your turn. I'll warn you now though, there is nothing you can do, so you might as well give it up. After all, you have only half of your life points left, while I have over ¾ of my life points." (Illidan 4000, Seto 6900)


	5. Chapter 5: The Long Awaited Duel, Pt 3

**Hello once again everyone! I'm coming off one heck of a weekend today. Friday, I went to the western part of Kentucky to visit some friends I had met online a few years ago. Two of them had created a forum, which I became a global moderator on later. The other was a person I had known for at least four years online as well. All these people I met through Yugioh duels online and a forum for Yugioh. It was a great time altogether, although I missed my mate dearly. I sort of was half there, half home. But overall, it was a great time. One of them said they may come see me sometime in the near future, so that's pretty cool. I know I have plenty of fun memories from the trip at the least, lol.**

**Alright, so last time, the duel raged on, with Seto and Illidan seemingly mostly even, till Seto decided to summon Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon. Facing off with a dragon of incredible strength, can Illidan win, or is it over for him? The answers shall soon be revealed.**

**Till then, it's time for my favorite part of these updates. You've got it, it's REVIEW TIME!**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Lol, what is ? Kidding of course, hehe. True, Seto is taking it to Illidan, but the duel isn't over yet. As for Seto gaining a personality resembling a living person, yeah, that's a bit of a change, lol. Yeah, I thought I'd kick things off with an old rivalry being rekindled. Lol, yeah, I think the Kaibaman idea went over well too. I can't imagine what kind of poses Pegasus would want Kaiba in… But yes, Illidan's deck is different. Remember, in **_**The Wolves Seal**_**, he had changed it there too from Chaos to Chaos/LV, with more LV than anything. Yeah, I do miss his old deck somewhat too, but I thought I'd try a new deck. (/Growls loudly\) I'm not a demi-doggy! I am a half demon!**

**bobmanv2.0: Wow, it's been a while since I've heard from you. As for the Chaos cards, that will be found out sooner or later.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: True, Kaiba and Yami's rematches were during Kaiba's disbelief of the past. Yeah, when I ended **_**TWS**_**, I didn't mention it going to GX or anything. Remember though, I did write a one-shot to fill in the gap. There is a reason that there was a ten year gap, which will be explained. Yeah, the two will connect, it just takes a bit of time.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Lol, I know. It's like, you want Kaiba to succeed for once now that he's happy, but at the same time, you want Illidan to wipe the floor with him, lol.**

**Ryon Nakura: The tree didn't move. (/Slashes it into firewood.\) See, it won't move, ever again. (/Ties fishing line to a piece of firewood and drags it behind him, making Ryon scream.\)**

**ardee: Wow, you updated quickly! Like, not even a few minutes after I posted, lol, which is cool. Yes, his deck has changed drastically. In **_**Tournament of Power**_**, it was mostly a Chaos deck, with a few odds and ends of other cards I liked, like the Magnet Warriors. **_**TWS**_** changed his deck yet again, with him dropping the Magnet Warriors, but keeping the Chaos cards, and picking up a bunch of LV monsters, which I found rather cool at the time. This time around, in **_**Forgotten Guardians**_**, I decided to go with a Spellcaster deck. As for the Chaos cards, well, we'll see. They're not seen yet for a reason is all I can say. Yes, Seto's deck was changed a bit to refocus his attention on his best monsters out, and fast. It is kind of odd with the XYZ cards in his deck. That's why I focused more on his dragons instead.**

**Alright, that's all the reviews for this time. If anyone else wants to see me answer their questions, comments, and/or remarks, feel free to review and I'll answer them the best I can. For now though, I believe this shall do it. Take care all, and enjoy the chapter. Till next time!**

**Chapter 5**

Softly chuckling, Illidan walked back forward to where he had been previously standing before the blast. "So typical of you Seto, thinking I'd surrender when facing impossible odds. Well, here is a news flash for you. I don't give up! As long as I know I can win, and there is breath in my body, I'll fight to the bitter end!"

He moved back to where he had been standing and looked Seto square in the eye. Seto only smiled at this, saying "That's what I wanted to hear. Never say die! Now, come on and give me what you got!"

Nodding, Illidan drew his card as he said "With pleasure."

Looking at the card, Illidan placed it in his hand and picked up the other card he held, saying "I place a monster in defense mode and call it a turn." (Illidan 4000, Seto 6900)

Smirking slightly, Seto drew his card, saying "That was kind of short and sweet. Too bad it won't help you. Now I summon my Spear Dragon (1900/0) in attack mode." A blue and white pterodactyl like dragon then appeared on the field, letting out a loud screeching roar.

"Spear Dragon, take out that face down monster with Tornado Blast!" The blue pterodactyl dragon let out a roar and opened up it's jaws, allowing a green tornado to escape from it's mouth.

Before the blast hit, the face down monster card image flipped up, revealing a mage with long flowing purple hair. It was up in small ties on the sides, but for the most part was flowing behind her. She wore a purple cape with some kind of odd purple armor on her shoulders, and held in her right arm a glowing sphere. The mage looked up for a moment, allowing her teal eyes to flash.

Slightly smiling, Illidan called out "Thanks Seto, you just triggered my Tsukuyomi's special ability. When flipped face up, she automatically can flip one monster on the field into face down defense mode, so I'll chose your Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon!"

The mage's eyes flashed a brighter shade of teal once more, but was glaring at the mighty white dragon. The dragon instantly roared loudly, but then vanished into the card image. The image then flipped face down and horizontal.

Seto could only snort loudly, but quickly said "No matter, my Spear Dragon can still take out that mage! And by the way, when Spear Dragon attacks a monster in defense, the difference in my dragon's attack points and your monster's defense points are dealt directly to your life points!"

Slightly gasping, Illidan said in a bit of shock "Trample effect? Not good!"

Lightly laughing, Seto replied "True, not good, for you at least!"

The dragon's green twister then struck the purple haired mage, causing her to cry out in pain and explode. The remainder of the blast the continued on, striking Illidan head on, making his cry out in pain.

"Of course, my dragon's second effect then kicks in. After attacking, he has to switch to defense mode." The blue dragon then silently roared as it pulled in it's wings and crouched down. A horizontal face up card image of the dragon then appeared underneath of it's feet, signifying it's defensive stance.

"I think I'll end my turn at that. Your move Illidan." (Illidan 3500, Seto 6900)

Looking back up from the slight pain he still held, Illidan called out "About time!"

Quickly drawing a card, he stared at it momentarily and smiled. "Time for me to turn this duel around, and it starts with this card. I play the spell card Pot of Avarice. Here's how it works. By sending five monsters from my Graveyard to the top of my deck, I can shuffle them in and then draw two new cards. So now, I'll send my Tsukuyomi, Silent Magician LV4 and LV8, Apprentice Magician, and Rapid-Fire Magician."

As he held up his Duel Disk, five monster cards then slid out of the Graveyard slot. Picking all five up, Illidan then took his deck out and placed the five on top. He then shuffled the deck for a minute, and then placed it back in the deck slot.

"Now, I get two new cards, so let's see what I get!" With ease, Illidan picked up two cards and looked them over with a small smile.

"I now place one monster in defense mode, and call it a turn." (Illidan 3500, Seto 6900)

Chuckling softly at first, Seto hunched over till finally he let out a mighty maniacal laugh, which was reminiscent of his old laughter. Finally calming down, Seto pointed a finger at Illidan, saying "You wasted your turn to make that pathetic move! That was sad Illidan, and for making such a lousy move, you deserve to lose! Now, watch a true move!"

Drawing a card, Seto looked it over and placed it back in his left hand, then picked up his horizontal face down monster, saying "I now flip summon my Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon (4500/3800) back into attack mode!" The horizontal card image on the field flipped over quickly, revealing the mighty three headed white metallic like dragon once more. It let out a mighty roar, showing it was ready to continue it's onslaught.

Taking hold of his other monster, he switched it from horizontal to vertical, saying as he did so "I switch my Spear Dragon back into attack mode now." The dragon's card image shattered as it stood back up. It let out a small roar, showing it's readiness to battle once more.

"End of the road Illidan! Go Spear Dragon, annihilate his face down monster with Tornado Blast!" The pterodactyl like dragon roared loudly as it opened up it's jaws and shot a powerful green cyclone straight for the face down card image.

"_This can't be it…_" Marie thought silently as she watched in horror.

Smirking smugly, Mokuba silently said to himself "_Seto, you've finally done it. You've accomplished your goal of beating Illidan._"

The green cyclone struck the face down card image, shattering it instantly and causing a big plum of smoke to appear. Through the smoke though, the group saw that the cyclone seemed to be striking something, but was being deflected. Then suddenly, through the smoke, a stream of the cyclone came flying back, striking Seto in the chest.

"What happened!?" Seto demanded.

Smirking, Illidan called out "My move wasn't a total waste Seto, because I drew this monster."

Illidan then pointed towards the smoke, which was dissipating. From the dissipating smoke stood a large cylinder, if not octagon, like building then appeared on the field. A doorway in the front part of the building was open, revealing the inside to have several levels. At each level was a shelf, which incased many books. Also on the levels, there was a piece of flooring sticking out with a place to stand, as well as a table for sitting at. The flooring was held up by green spheres, which appeared to be small antigravity engines, which kept the flooring aloft.

"You see Seto, your dragon just attacked my Royal Magical Library (0/2000), which had just enough defense points to weather your dragon's attack. I knew you couldn't resist finishing this duel, so I counted on the fact that you'd attack with your Spear Dragon first, and boy did it pay off. Thanks to your attack, your dragon failed to get through my defenses, you lost 100 life points, and your dragon was forced to switch back to defense. I couldn't have asked for anything better."

Growling slightly as his blue dragon switched back into it's defensive mode, Seto called out "If you're done gloating, then it's time I eliminated that stupid library! It may have stopped my Spear Dragon, but let's see it stop this! Neutron Blast now my Blue-Eyes!"

With each head roaring loudly, the three headed dragons charged up for their devastating attack. The three simultaneously fired a stream of powerful white energy, with the three combining at a specific point. The stream then continued on, striking the cylinder like building, causing it to instantly be crushed by the blast. With a thunderous explosion, the building came toppling down, leaving nothing in front of Illidan.

"I'll end my turn for now. I'd be weary Illidan, for next turn, I will get to your life points!" (Illidan 3500, Seto 6800)

Sighing slightly, Illidan looked at his hand and then at his deck. "_I have to make this turn count. I know Seto will have the advantage next turn. All I have in my hand right now is Polymerization and Diffusion-Wave Motion. Neither spell card are of use to me at the moment, but I know there has to be a card that can help me. There just has to be._"

As he drew, Illidan silently thought "_As Joey would say, come on deck, show me some love!_"

Picking up his new card, Illidan examined it and smiled. Looking back up at Seto, he grinned, saying "It's time I take control of this duel. I now place one card face down. Next, I play the spell card Double Spell! By discarding one spell card from my hand, I can now activate a spell card from your Graveyard and use it as my own."

Placing his spare card in his hand on the Graveyard slot, Illidan said as the card slid in "So now, I send Diffusion-Wave Motion to my Graveyard, and I chose to activate your Card of Demise! Now with it, I can draw till I hold five cards in my hand. Of course, I do have to discard my entire hand in five turns, but that's a small price to pay at the moment."

With a fluent motion, he picked up five new cards and examined them. His grin became even wider at the sight of his cards.

Grabbing hold of three cards from his hand, Illidan then pointed at his face down card, which revealed it. "Now, I activate my face down spell card known as Polymerization, allowing me to now fuse from my hand the two Cyber Dragons (2100/1600) and The Light – Hex-Sealed Fusion (1000/1600) to create the Cyber End Dragon (4000/2800) in attack mode!"

Two metallic snake like machine dragons and a round rock like creature with one arm and emitting light then appeared on the field and began to swirl together. A brilliant white light then appeared, and a new monster appeared from the light. As the light dimmed, a large three headed machine snake like dragon with large metallic wings and a long tail then appeared. It had some lights running up and down the side of each dragon's head, along with a set of large green lights on the corner of the inner part of the dragon's wings. On the dragon's chest, right below where the head had connected, was a large green light as well. The three headed dragon roared loudly with a machine growl.

"How could you form that dragon without the third Cyber Dragon?!" asked a shocked Seto.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan quickly explained, saying "Simple Seto. My Hex-Sealed Fusion acts as a substitute for a Fusion-Material monster. Since I didn't have my third Cyber Dragon, I just subbed in my Hex."

Seto only nodded but frowned. "_Even though he's formed a powerful fusion monster, it's still no match for my dragon. So why bother?_"

Seeing Seto's confusion, Illidan smirked at it and then called out "You'd better pay attention Seto, cause I'm not done. Cyber End Dragon, let's even the playing field for earlier in the duel! Attack his Spear Dragon with Super Strident Blaze!"

The three headed machine dragon roared loudly as it each head opened it's jaws. The glow of silver light then appeared in each dragon's mouth, causing a bit of electricity to come out as well. Each dragon then spat a beam of energy forward, with the three beams twisting together to form one large beam.

"Oh, by the way Seto, just so you know, my dragon has a special ability! Like Spear Dragon, it has a trample effect, meaning the difference in my dragon's attack points and your dragon's defense points is dealt directly to you!"

In shock, Seto quickly replied "But my dragon has no defense points!"

Nodding, Illidan yelled back "Exactly, meaning my attack is like a direct attack on your life points! Say adios to 4000 life points!"

The blast then struck the pterodactyl like dragon head on, making it roar loudly in pain as it shattered. The entire blast then traveled on past the shattered monster and struck Seto directly, making him scream out in pain as he was thrown backwards to the ground.

As the blast subsided, Seto was laying on the ground, slightly trembling from the force of the attack. Slowly, he stood back up, but stumbled a bit as he stood.

"That should be enough damage for one turn. To end, I'll place one card face down. Back to you Seto." (Illidan 3500, Seto 2800)

Marie only could gasp in shock. "_He just turned the tables on Seto! In one turn, Illidan has gone from far behind in the duel to back on top! That shot really shook Seto I think, which is what he needed to get back in the game._"

Staring at his brother, who was panting in a slouched over position with his hands on his knees, Mokuba only silently pondered what just happened. "_Seto had the duel won I thought, but just when it looked like he was in the clear, Illidan pulled this strategy out of the air. Man, this is bad!_"

After a few moments, Seto finally caught his breath and a small smile appeared across his face. He stood back up straight and smirked, and said "Very nice execution Illidan. I wasn't expecting you to hit me with an attack like that, but then again, I knew you'd make a comeback. You always seem to find someway to beat the odds. Even with your back against the wall, you find a way to make a comeback."

As he drew his card, he then said in a more serious tone "But that doesn't mean I'm through just yet! No, I'm far from done with this duel!"

Looking at the card he just drew, Seto then called out "Time to get back at you for taking my dragon out! Go Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, attack that scrap heap with Neutron Blast!"

Each of the heads of the white dragon roared loudly and began building up energy within their mouths. With great force, the three dragons then fired their energy beams, which formed into one large beam as it approached the machine dragon.

Seeing this, Illidan let a small smile grace his face and called out "The jokes on you this time Seto! I reveal my face down spell card, Rush Recklessly! Now I get to add 700 attack points to my dragon for this turn, meaning it's stronger than your dragon now (4000 + 700 4700/2800)!"

The large three headed machine dragon roared loudly as it began to glow with new power, signifying it's readiness for the oncoming onslaught.

"Cyber End Dragon, counterattack with Super Strident Blaze!"

With a mighty metallic roar, each head opened their jaws and took aim at the three headed white dragon. In a simple motion, the three dragons released a blast of pure silver energy from their jaws, which combined together, forming a large beam as the other dragon had. The two blasts met head on, seemingly drawing even at first. After a moment though, the silver blast pushed the white energy blast backwards. Finally the three headed white dragon could no longer sustain the blast and was forced to stop firing energy. That caused the machine dragon's attack to come flying back into the large dragon, which slammed into the dragon hard, making it roar in great pain. In a thunderous explosion, the three headed white dragon exploded, sending out small shock waves from it.

Seto only growled loudly as he saw the end results. Grabbing both cards with his right hand, he said "I place these two cards face down and end my move (4000/2800)." (Illidan 3500, Seto 2600)

Nodding, Illidan drew his next card and called out "Time to end this duel! Cyber End Dragon, direct attack with Super Strident Blaze!"

The machine dragon heads all three roared to life and each sent a surge of silver energy out their mouths, which formed another large beam. The blast then headed straight for Seto, intent on ending the game once and for all.

Smirking, Seto yelled "I'm not going down that easy Illidan! I reveal my trap card, Call of the Haunted! Now I can special summon one monster from my Graveyard to the field in attack mode, so I'll be picking the one monster I need to take you down. Return now my Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon (4500/3800)!"

With a brilliant display, the mighty dragon reappeared on the field, letting out a mighty roar, which caused the blast to instantly vanish. The dragon then landed on the field and let out another loud roar, seemingly challenging the machine dragon to try and attack it.

"The way I see it now Illidan, you have two choices since I interrupted your little attack. Continue your attack and lose your dragon, or end your move and still lose your dragon. Your choice."

Lightly chuckling at this, Illidan replied "I chose my third choice, which is to place one card face down and end my turn." (Illidan 3500, Seto 2600)


	6. Chapter 6: The Long Awaited Duel, Pt 4

**Hey there everyone! Well, this week so far has been interesting so far. I've come up with a new idea for a one-shot based off a song I heard while on my vacation last week. It's been stuck in my mind since I left, and made me especially think of how I felt while away from my mate. It's the song "**_**When You're Gone**_**," written by Avril Lavigne. Lol, why sad songs get stuck in my head for some reason, and why they inspire me, I'll never know, hehe.**

**Last time, the duel between Illidan and Seto heated up, with Illidan managing to strike back and even summon his own powerful fusion monster. Now at a standstill, with both having their most powerful monsters out, what will happen next?**

**Alright, it's time once again! Queue the review music! (/Finds Naruto theme music to listen to.\)**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Yeah, in the one shot, I had hinted that Seto had changed, which he had really. Nope, the duel didn't end, but will it this time?**

**x-knight20: That is explained soon enough. Sorry to be vague, but it kind of ruins things if I just say yes or no.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Thank you. Well, I decided to do this story in GX due that I had finished up with the Yugioh series. I mean, my last one-shot ended with the Pharaoh crossing over, so there was nothing left from the Yugioh series to work with. Besides, I've yet to tell everyone what Illidan and Marie were up to during their ten year journey. Sure, they got through grad school, which took six years, but what about the other four? Don't forget, Yami charged them with one last task before he left, so they had some stuff to do. I know, kind of vague, lol.**

**ardee: Yeah, I figured the alerts were going to you pretty quickly. Yep, he still has his Cyber Dragons. I had thought about dumping them, but to compete with Seto, he needed them. As for original cards, I'll be honest, yes, later on. Thanks again for your comments.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Thanks for the compliment. Don't worry about Ryon, he'll be fine. (/Slips shrink another $50. Screaming increases.\)**

**Ok, that's all for the reviews today. I hope you all enjoy this next chapter. I look forward to all the reviews I'll get from it. Later everyone!**

**Chapter 6**

Nodding, Seto then drew his card, but Illidan quickly called out "Don't forget Seto, you're Card of Demise's effect goes off this turn. Now you have to discard your entire hand to the Graveyard, so say farewell to whatever card you just drew."

Looking at the card, Seto only shrugged, showing Illidan that the card. "It's just my useless Rare Metal Dragon (2400/1200). Oh well, goodbye my dragon." With effortless motion, he placed the card in the Graveyard slot, where the card easily was pulled in.

Smirking, Seto then said "I next activate my trap card, Jar of Greed! Thanks to this card, I get to draw one card from my deck."

"So, you had a backup plan I take it." Illidan said aloud as Seto drew his card.

Nodding as he glanced at his card, Seto replied "I always have a backup plan, just in case. Speaking of backup plans, it looks like I'm about to finish this duel."

Still smirking, Seto pointed at Illidan, saying "You're about to meet your end Illidan. You see, as powerful as this dragon is, there is an even stronger Blue-Eyes in my deck!"

Not understanding, Illidan playfully chuckled and replied "You must have hit your head pretty hard or something Seto. There are only two types of Blue-Eyes, and you've played both so far."

Smirking once more, Seto countered with "You're not quite correct Illidan. There is a third Blue-Eyes, and it's in my deck thanks to Pegasus! Now I reveal it, so I first must sacrifice my Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon!"

The large three headed dragon roared loudly as it vanished from the field in a flash of white light. "And now," continued Seto, "I reveal my strongest monster in my deck! Come forth and show yourself, my Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon (3000/2500) in attack mode!"

A blinding white light then filled the field, everyone, except Seto, cover their faces. Illidan glanced back up, only to see a figure forming in the black light. Slowly, large wings, with a long neck and powerful head formed. Finally, the light died down enough to reveal the figure was a mighty dragon made of silver metal. It had no arms, but powerful metallic legs, along with mighty metallic wings, and a powerful metal tail. It's head was powerful and coated in the same metal, and it had several blue half spheres on it's body. One on each of the top of it's wings, then one in it's chest, one on the top of it's head, and several down it's back. The dragon let out a higher pitched screech than the other previous Blue-Eyes dragons had.

Illidan was awestruck at the new dragon. "_It's a monster I've never seen before, or even heard of! What is this thing!? And more importantly, what can it do!?_"

Marie only stared on as well, unsure of what to make of the new dragon. "_This is trouble, with a capital t. That thing maybe weaker than Illidan's dragon, but I have a feeling that dragon has a special ability that will make it real trouble. Stay strong Illidan, for you can't falter now._"

"I'm sure you're quite shocked Illidan, but please stay in the game." Seto said, instantly breaking Illidan's gaze at the new dragon.

"Where…" Illidan began.

Interrupting quickly, Seto said "Did I get it? I got it from Pegasus. You see, right after Battle City, I wanted to battle once more with the Pharaoh, but of course, with him controlling the three Egyptian God Cards, I had to find a new way to beat him. I researched strategies and cards for a few weeks before I finally decided there was only one way to beat the Gods, and that was by asking the one person I hated to for help."

Slightly smiling as he looked up into the sky, Seto continued saying "I went to Pegasus for help. I asked him directly if he had anything to stop the Egyptian God Cards, and he hinted he did, but he wasn't willing to give them to me. No, he said I wasn't worthy of them, so I made a proposition. I told him if he could beat me in a duel, I'd give him my three Blue-Eyes White Dragons. But if I won, Pegasus would give me whatever he had to beat the Egyptian God Cards. He of course agreed to this deal, and so we had our duel.

Lightly chuckling, Seto looked back down at Illidan, saying "I beat him in the duel, and ended up getting the Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon, as well as another card, but that card wasn't his. Anyways, me and the Pharaoh dueled again, and I used this card against him. In the end, he won the duel due that someone interrupted it, but oh well. Ever since, I took that card out of my deck. I felt it was to improbable to draw the card while I had the Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon out again, so I put it away in my card safe."

Smirking, Seto then said "Today, before you arrived, I was preparing my deck, when I suddenly felt the urge to add the card back to my deck. Something told me I'd need it, and I see now I did."

"Still, your dragon is awfully weak. After all, it only has the same number of attack and defense points as your Blue-Eyes White Dragon had." Illidan quickly pointed out.

Laughing, Seto replied "True Illidan, but as you know, things aren't as they always seem. I now activate my Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon's special ability, which is quite a shocking one. Now, for each Dragon type monster in my Graveyard, my dragon gains 300 attack points."

Illidan lightly gasped, thinking back to how many Dragon type monsters he had destroyed, or Seto had sent to the Graveyard. "_This won't end well._" was the only thought that came to his mind.

"Time to do a dragon role call. First, there are my three Blue-Eyes White Dragons, plus Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, making the total of four dragons. Next, there was my Rare Metal Dragon, then my Spear Dragon which gives me six dragons so far. Then there was my Paladin of White Dragon, and finally my Luster Dragon #2, which means I have a total of eight dragons. Altogether, that means my Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon now gains 2400 total attack points (3000 + 2400 5400/2500)!" declared Seto.

The powerful metal dragon roared softly as it's body began to glow light blue. Slowly, it's strength increased, bit by bit, till finally the blue light dimmed and the dragon let out a mighty screech.

"No way!" Illidan cried out in shock. "_That dragon just gained 2400 points. Still, there is hope._" he silently said to himself as he eyed his face down card.

Laughing manically, Seto replied "Yes way! And it's about to get worse! Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon, annihilate his pathetic Cyber End Dragon with Shining Neutron Blast!"

With a small screech, the dragon opened it's jaws, allowing a rainbow colored sphere of light to form. Quickly, the dragon released a beam of rainbow energy straight at the machine dragon.

Before anything else could happen, Illidan let a smile cross his face, and said "Sorry Seto, but I'm not through with you yet! Forget about my face down card? Well, if you did, now it's time to remember it!"

Pointing at the face down card as it flipped face up, Illidan said "I activate my spell card known as De-Fusion, which now splits my monster back into the original monsters that formed him, so return now my two Cyber Dragons (2100/1600) and The Light - Hex-Sealed Fusion (1000/1600), all in defense mode!"

The three headed dragon roared softly as it began to glow. Finally, after a moment, the dragon split apart into three separate lights as the blast of rainbow colored energy struck the spot where the machine dragon once stood, causing a large explosion. As the explosion subsided, two snake like machine dragons and a large boulder like creature with light glowing off of it's body and a large arm were left on the field.

Seton only softly growled, but then smiled, saying "Oh well, I'll just have to take you out next turn. Your move." (Illidan 3500, Seto 2600)

Marie softly sighed, feeling a little relief that Illidan had once again survived another turn. "_Still, he's not in the clear._"

Illidan quietly drew a card and smiled softly at it. Looking back up at the field, Illidan called out "First, I'll activate the effect of my The Light - Hex-Sealed Fusion. You see, Hex allows me play it as Polymerization when creating a Light attribute monster. So now, I use Hex's effect to fuse itself and the two Cyber Dragons in order to bring back my Cyber End Dragon (4000/2800) in attack mode!"

The boulder like creature suddenly glowed brighter, and then the monster along with the two machine dragons began swirling together till finally then vanished. In their place stood a three headed machine dragon, which let out a powerful machine roar.

"Now for the fun part. You played this card earlier, but I stopped it with my mage's effect, so now I'll try it against you! I play the spell card Shrink, which now cuts your dragon's attack points in half!"

A beam of energy then shot from the spell card straight for the dragon. The dragon seemed unafraid though, as well as Seto. The beam was about to strike the dragon when suddenly the dragon began to glow light blue. The light blue aura then repelled the beam coming at the dragon, and the spell card instantly was shattered.

"What!?" Illidan said in total shock.

Lightly chuckling, Seto called out "Don't think I'd be foolish enough to summon a monster without another special ability. My dragon has the special ability to allow me to choose which spell, trap, or monster effects that affects it. Since it's my choice, I chose to not allow your spell card to affect my dragon."

Illidan could only gasp, quickly realizing he was in real trouble. "_Not good, at all! Now I can't beat that dragon unless I can outmuscle it! And I just made the stupid mistake of bringing back my dragon, which means I'm trapped._"

Knowing he had no way out of his current predicament, he just sighed and sadly said "I end my turn." (Illidan 3500, Seto 2600)

Smirking like he had already won, Seto said triumphantly as he drew "Blue-Eyes, attack his pathetic dragon now with Shining Neutron Blast!"

The powerful dragon screeched loudly and opened it's jaws, causing a sphere of rainbow energy to come pouring out. After a moment, the dragon then shot the powerful sphere of rainbow energy straight at the weaker machine dragon. The blast struck the machine dragon, making it roar loudly in pain as it's body was turned into scrap. Within a few moments, the dragon was finally shattered, allowing the remainder of the dragon's blast to go flying at Illidan. The blast struck him hard, throwing him into the air a short ways backwards.

Still smirking, Seto said smartly "I'll place one card face down, and end my turn. Your move Illidan." (Illidan 2100, Seto 2600)

With some difficulty, Illidan slowly rose to his feet. He wasn't hit too terribly hard, but the blast had inflicted a good bit of damage to his life points, so he had taken a decent hit. On shaky legs, Illidan slowly walked back to his position on the field and looked at the scenario in front of him.

"_Hmm, right now, I only have 2100 points and one spell card in my hand, which is useless. After all, I have nothing to use my Double Attack card on. Not to mention, I have to discard a card just to use it. If I'm going to get out of this mess, I need a good card, and I need it now. Time to see if I've got what it takes to take that dragon down._"

He then drew and looked at the card, but before he could say anything, Seto called out, saying "Before you do anything Illidan, I'm activating a trap card. I activate the trap known as Destruction of Destiny. Here is how it works. I now send three cards from the top of my deck to my Graveyard. For each spell or trap I draw, I take 1000 points of damage."

"That's kind of foolish. If you draw three spell or trap cards, you lose, so why chance it?" Illidan asked, unsure of what Seto was doing.

Smirking, Seto quickly replied "It's really simple Illidan. If I draw monsters, which happen to be Dragon types, my dragon will get stronger. Of course, the risk is great, but I'm willing to take it. After all, if I'm to beat you, I need any kind of advantage I can take, so this is one risk I'll be willing to take."

Looking at his deck then as he picked up three cards, he said "Let's see what we have here."

Turning them to face Illidan, Seto said "Well, I just drew two Dragon type monsters, which are Spirit Ryu and Hyozanryu. The third card is the trap card known as Crush Card Virus, so I do take a little damage."

Seto's Duel Disk then sparked, sending out a small jolt of electricity, simulating the punishment for picking the wrong card. Still smirking, Seto then placed the three cards in his Graveyard slot, allowing all three to slowly be pulled in. The metal dragon on the field then roared loudly as it's strength increased once more (5400 + 600 6000/2500).

"Continue on Illidan, although I doubt you'll have any chance of beating me." Seto said as he smirked triumphantly.

Looking again at the card he just drew, Illidan softly smiled and said "I think this card will help. I place one monster in defense, and end my turn." (Illidan 2100, Seto 1600)

Picking up his new card, Seto smiled once more, saying "I activate the effect of my Thunder Dragon that I just drew. Now by discarding this monster to my Graveyard, I get to add up to two more Thunder Dragon's from my deck, but instead, I'll just add one. So now I send this card to the grave, and get my new dragon."

After placing the card in his Graveyard, Seto pulled his deck out and looked through it till he found the card he wanted. He then shuffled his deck and placed it back in it's slot, but was quick to say "I now do the same thing again, and send this Thunder Dragon to the Graveyard. Time to once again pull out another new Thunder Dragon."

Once more repeating the process, Seto said "I finally send this last dragon to my Graveyard, but since I have no more Thunder Dragon's in my deck, I get to just shuffle it up."

"_Why did he just waste his turn sending those dragons to the Graveyard?_" Marie pondered.

As if knowing what she was thinking, Seto called out "In case you didn't know what I just did, I'll tell you Illidan. I just deposited three more dragons into my Graveyard, and you know what that means. My dragon gains yet another 900 attack points (6000 + 900 6900/2500)!" The powerful metal dragon softly roared as it's body began to glow a light shade of blue and it's strength once more increased.

"Now, to send whatever monster you have on a one way trip to the Graveyard. Shining Dragon, annihilate that monster with Shining Neutron Blast!" With a brilliant flash of rainbow light, a blast of rainbow energy was sent streaking towards the face down monster.

Before the blast hit, the card image flipped up, revealing a young female mage with long pink hair held back in a pony tail appeared. She wore purple and pink robes with a yellow cord belt. In her left hands was a long golden staff with a crescent moon at the top of the staff. She was in a one kneed position with the staff held defensively in front of her body.

Right before the blast could incinerate her, Illidan called out "Thanks for flipping my Magician of Faith (300/400). Now I get to add one spell card from my Graveyard to my hand, so I pick my Pot of Greed card."

As he added the card to his hand, the dragon's blast hit the young mage head on, easily causing her destruction within a second of the blast hitting.

"You may have added a card to your hand Illidan, but it won't help. I'll end my turn now." (Illidan 2100, Seto 1600)

As Illidan was about to draw, Seto chimed in, saying "Don't forget Illidan, after your next turn, the following turn marks five turns since you activated Card of Demise, which means you'll lose your entire hand. I have a feeling this turn will quite possibly be your last turn."

Growling softly, Illidan drew his next card, thinking silently "_If I don't draw something here and now to help me win, I'll for sure lose next turn. Come on Heart of the Cards, guide me._"

Raising the card to his face, Illidan softly gasped at the card. It was one he had added to his deck that could actually help him win the duel. Looking at the other two cards in his hand, he decided to give this turn everything he had.

Picking up another card from his hand, Illidan called out "I now play the spell card Pot of Greed, allowing me to draw two new cards."

He quickly picked up two new cards and flashed a smile. He then said "I next play the spell card Fusion Recovery. Here is how it works: I get to add one Polymerization and one fusion material monster from my Graveyard to my hand, so I add The Light - Hex-Sealed Fusion back."

His Graveyard slot then glowed lightly as both cards were pushed out of the slot. Picking the two up, Illidan then said "I next play Polymerization, allowing me to fuse my Buster Blader (2600/2300) and The Light - Hex-Sealed Fusion together, to create the one and only Dark Paladin (2900/2400) in attack mode!"

Everyone only stood in shock as they watched the boulder like monster with light pouring off it's body and a purple warrior with a large lance on it's back appear on the field. The two then began to swirl together, causing a black sphere to appear. The sphere touched down on the ground, and then finally dissipated to reveal a new mage. He had blue skin, long grey hair which was flowing out of his odd shaped helmet, and red eyes. He wore powerful looking blue armor with orange stripes all over it, and held a large magical staff that had a lance like sword on the top of it.

Seto only stared at the creature wide eyed. Images of his battle with Yami at Battle City flashed through his mind, which is where he saw this monster for the first time. "_That was the monster that beat me! The monster that put me out of the tournament for good!_"

It then struck him that it was the same monster that was about to take him down once more. "_IT CAN'T END LIKE THIS, NOT AGAIN!_" his mind screamed.

Seeing Seto's reaction, Illidan smirked and said "I take it you've seen this monster before. Well, just to remind you, here is how his effect works. My Dark Paladin gains 500 attack points for each and every Dragon type monster in our Graveyards and on the field. Last count I had, you had 13 dragons in the Graveyard, plus one on the field, meaning my Dark Paladin now gains 7000 attack points (2900 + 7000 9900/2400)!"

The mage then let out a mighty battle cry as his body began to glow with a dark aura. Finally, his strength finished increasing as his body crackled with dark electricity. He stared at the metal dragon in front of himself that was giving off a blue aura, seemingly wishing to tear it apart.

"It's time to end this, once and for all. Dark Paladin, attack his dragon now with Magical Lance Blast!"

The mage let out a mighty battle cry and leapt high into the air. Seto watched wide eyed as the mage aimed his staff straight at his dragon. The mage then pushed power into this staff, forming a large black sphere of energy. Pulling his staff back, the mage swung the staff in front of himself, throwing the sphere of dark energy from the lance. With a mighty force, the black sphere struck the dragon head on, making it screech loudly in pain. After a few moments, a thunderous explosion followed, shattering the dragon's body into millions of pieces.

Seto fell to his hands and knees as the last of his life points drained away, leaving him with the knowledge that he had once again lost.


	7. Chapter 7: Explanations and Paperwork

**Hello once more everyone! Well, my weekend was decent. Nothing really happened, other than I worked on this story, and other stuff, lol. Hmm, nothing has really happened in life that has become pressing, other than I seem to be getting more of this story wrote, thankfully. I'm nearly finished with the end, so that means once I finish up, I can start posting 3 times a week instead.**

**Last time, Illidan finally ended the duel with a thunderous explosion, conquering a monster that had yet to be destroyed in battle. With the loss of Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon, Seto's duel and chance to beat Illidan for once ended. The question is, now what?**

**Alright, time for my favorite part of Tuesday! That's right, it's review time!**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Lol, yeah, that had to suck for Seto to see Dark Paladin once more, and for it to once again hand him defeat. Thanks, I figured it would be a nice way to end the duel. I originally wasn't sure if I would use BESD, but when I began the duel, I was like, well, he'll need it to take on Illidan, hence it got included. There are new cards, plus later on, some new ones I came up with. Heh, when Illidan and Jaden meet, it is interesting. You're right, they are kind of the same. Hmm, I ponder about that… You'll get my comment later on in the story. But yeah, Crowler will have double the Slifer Slackers to deal with, plus one for Marie, hehe. Thanks again for the comments.**

**bobmanv2.0: Thanks for the comment. I'm glad you liked the ending.**

**x-knight20: Thank you for your comment. Yeah, I'm sure Jaden and gang will have a good time with Illidan.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Yep, yet again Kaiba was crushed by the monster that haunted his first defeat. Yeah, I figured that would add some flare to the end of the duel. Thanks for the comments.**

**ardee: Lol, yep, Seto lost. True, the story is starting a bit slow. I realized that the other day that perhaps this duel was a bit too long, but then again, the early chapters a wee bit smaller than the later ones. True, this is only the beginning. I was mostly catching up with Seto, lol. Yep, you were right, he had BESD. Like I said, he just took it out of his deck for a while, but a duel with Illidan got him to add it back. Hehe, Dark Paladin was extremely strong thanks to Seto dumping all those Dragons in his Graveyard. Do you mean Illidan's original? I kind of did too, but this new deck did grow on me after a while.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Nope, Seto just can't win against Illidan, lol. LOL! That sucks that your favorites is full. I didn't know you could fill one up. I sometimes ponder if I have too many on Story Alert though. Lol, it's alright Ryon. (/Pushes a palm tree closer.\)**

**Isis the Sphinx: Lol, sort of did have to rub it in. True, I could have explained that, but meh, I didn't. Thanks for the comments as always!**

**Well guys, that does it for this round of reviews. If anyone has any questions so far about the story, or comments or suggestions, feel free to make them. I'll answer them the best I can as always.**

**Anyways, I'm out for today, so enjoy this new chapter. It's not a duel, but it does explain a few things. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 7**

As soon as the explosion cleared the field, the remaining holograms cleared from the field. Marie smiled great big and ran onto the field, hugging Illidan fiercely.

"YOU DID IT! YOU DID IT! YOU DID IT!" she screamed wildly as he grabbed hold of her and spun her around in circles.

Smiling at her, he replied "Yep, I did. Now we don't have to worry about jobs."

Taking a moment to breathe a sigh of relief, Illidan turned his attention to Seto, who was still on his hands and knees. Mokuba had walked over to his brother, seemingly consoling him on his loss.

Finally letting go of Marie, Illidan walked over and offered a friendly hand to Seto, who looked up at Illidan and lightly smirked. He gladly accepted it, saying "Good duel Illidan. Congratulations on your victory."

Smiling back, Illidan helped Seto stand and said "Thanks. That was one of the best duels I think I've ever seen you put on."

"Same here." said a New York style accent in the background.

The group turned around to find a sandy blonde haired young man with brown eyes standing with a big grin on his face. He wore a white dress shirt with a blue undershirt, and had on blue jeans.

"Hey Joey!" Marie called out in surprise. She ran over to her old friend and hugged him, making him smile and pat her on the back.

He then let go and turned to Illidan, saying "Good to see you again man. That was one heck of a duel you and Kaiba just put on."

Curious, Illidan asked "Were you here the whole time?"

Shaking his head, Joey simply replied "Nah, I saw it from the roof cam in Kaiba's office. I arrived just a few minutes after you all left I guess, and the secretary let me sit in his office. Well, I noticed a T.V., so I flipped it on, only to find your duel. About the time you lost your Cyber End Dragon, I hurried to the elevator to get up here and help support you. Time I got here though, you had already fused your monster together, and was about to obliterate poor Kaiba's dragon. I just stood and watched as you took it out, and thought I'd finally make my appearance once you were done."

Nodding, Illidan asked "So, what brings you here Joey?"

"He's here for his usual rematch…" Seto said with irritation in his voice.

Lightly chuckling, Joey shook his head, saying "Actually, not today. That isn't till Friday, remember Kaiba? Nah, today I came here to just see what was up with Kaiba. After all, we eat lunch a few days a week, and today was one of them."

"Oh…" Marie said, somewhat in shock. "_They eat lunch together!? Last time I checked, they were bitter rivals. Joey was hell bent on beating Kaiba, while Seto didn't seem to care at all. I guess time does really change people._"

Knowing Marie was thinking the same thing, Illidan only chuckled, saying bluntly "You two sure have changed since ten years ago."

"For the worst probably." Seto said dramatically.

The vein in Joey's forehead popped out, as he yelled "Why you ungrateful rich kid, after all me and you have been through, you still say that!?"

Chuckling, Seto replied "Yep. Anything to get a rise out of you."

Growling softly, Joey finally sighed and lightly chuckled himself, saying "Yeah, that figures."

Turning his attention back to Illidan, Seto offered a hand of congratulations to Illidan, saying "Well done Illidan. You beat me, fair and square, and as promised, you and Marie shall have your jobs. Your official titles are simple for the two of you to remember. You're both the headmasters of the male and female Slifer Dorms."

Frowning, Illidan asked "Are they in separate buildings?"

Shaking his head, Seto simply replied "They're actually two floors to the Slifer Dorm. Plus, there are plans to add on this year. Also, the two of you will have a private house behind the dorm that's two stories, seeing how you both need to be near the dorm."

Both Illidan and Marie nodded, and Marie then asked "By the way, what will I be teaching?"

Quickly replying without much though, Seto replied "Math of course, but you and Illidan will be teaching two other classes. The first class, the two of you will be teaching it together. See, even though you're both no longer officially the Tag Team Champions, only due that the Pro League decided to reset all the titles, you're both two of the best duelists at tag team dueling, hence you two will be teaching a class on it."

Both nodded in agreement, and Seto continued, saying "As for the other class that the two of you have to teach, that's being worked out. So far, a few classes always seem to be left over. Some teachers just don't want to teach some classes it seems. Anyways, I do have a list of what isn't taken, so the two of you could decide before being forced I guess."

Then turning to a serious tone, Seto said "There is one other thing I need to talk to you two about, but I want to do it privately. Nothing personal Wheeler or Mokuba, but it's a personal matter that I need to discuss with them."

Joey was about to object, but then decided to not. He nodded and motioned for Mokuba to go with him. The two then left in the elevator, leaving the three alone.

Sighing, Seto sat down on a bench near the field, motioning for Illidan and Marie to join him. The two sat down beside of him, intently wanting to know what was so important that had to be discussed in private.

Knowing they wanted answer, Seto began with "There is one other thing the two of you need to do while at the academy. Illidan, remember about close to ten years ago, about four or so months after Yami crossed over, Pegasus and I asked a favor of you?"

Illidan only nodded, knowing exactly what favor Kaiba had asked of him. "Well, I need to ask you now to go check on something about it."

"Don't tell me…" Illidan began, but was cut off quickly.

"Hold off before you say anything Illidan." Seto cut in. Illidan nodded, and Seto continued, saying "No, the seals haven't been undone, that I know of. I personally went to make sure."

Letting off a long sigh, Seto continued, saying "This problem stems back about nine years. You see, after the first year Duel Academy was open, a mysterious disappearance happened in one of the four dorms."

Thinking for a moment, Marie quickly interjected with "Wait, there are only three dorms from what I heard. Why do you say four?"

Knowing Marie didn't know much, most likely due to Illidan being quiet about the subject, Seto replied "There were four dorms to begin with the year Duel Academy was opened. As you know, I modeled the three dorms after the three Egyptian God Cards. Well, the fourth dorm was modeled after an Egyptian God Card as well. It was the Anubis Dorm."

Marie nodded, but said "Still, that doesn't explain why there are only three now."

Continuing, Seto replied "True Marie, but there is a reason. You see, after the first year, some disappearances happened in the fourth dorm, which was the Anubis Dorm. There were eight students there at the time, with the rest not in due to class. Later that day, when the rest of the students returned, they found four students completely unconscious. The other four students were gone without a trace. The four that were left awoke in the infirmary a few days later, but it was creepy."

Looking at the ground, Seto said "I personally went to check on them, seeing how this was a major incident, and I wanted to get to the bottom of this matter. The four students all had complete amnesia. They had no clue who they were or where they were. It was completely illogical, and seemed completely too coincidental. So, I decided to do some investigating of my own."

Taking the time to look back up, Seto moved on, saying "I had all students belonging to Anubis Dorm evacuated for a week so I could conduct my own investigation. Something bothered me though during my investigation. I got a slight sense of the Shadow Realm, which made me think some nut with Shadow Powers was on the island. I combed the island, but never found any sources really. After giving up, I returned to Anubis Dorm and continued to search it. I never found a single clue to show that the students left on their own free will, or were abducted. I couldn't draw any kind of a conclusion on the results of my investigation."

"So, you assumed they left then?" Illidan interjected.

Shaking his head, Seto replied "On the contrary Illidan, I believed that someone, or something with Shadow Powers may have struck the dorm, and the four left behind were the lucky ones. After my week of investigating, I finally cranked out a report, stating that I wasn't entirely sure what had happened, but that all students should partner up with a roommate. I had hopes that whoever had done this, would hopefully leave the island, or at least strike while I was there."

After a deep sigh, Seto then said "Neither happened though."

Looking up at the sky sadly, Seto continued with "About the middle of year two of Duel Academy, the same type of incident happened again over Christmas Break. A few students had stayed behind in Anubis Dorm for the holidays. During this time, the headmaster decided to take the kids ice skating. One student elected to stay home due that he was sick. The student's roommate was home for the holidays, so the headmaster paid no heed to the decree I made."

Closing his eyes, he then turned his face down, saying "When the students and the headmaster returned, that student was gone. Like the other four, he just vanished. I was called about the matter immediately, and I ordered Anubis Dorm shutdown that very day. I moved all students in that dorm to different dorms, mostly Ra and Obelisk. The dorm was then condemned, and rules were made that said no entry was permitted."

Slowly opening his eyes, the sadness reflected in his dark blue eyes could be seen as he said "Still, that didn't stop another student from being taken a few years ago. For some reason a student went there, and once again, the student vanished, making a total of six missing. Four were left in permanent amnesia, while six were gone."

Turning to both Illidan and Marie, Seto sadly asked "Do you know how hard it is to tell six families that you have no idea where there children are, or even if they're alive?"

Marie's heart literally broke at hearing that question, as she gently hugged Seto. Illidan too felt the pain, not knowing what he could say or do if he had been Kaiba when he faced those families.

Releasing Seto from the hug, Seto softly smiled, saying "Thank you Marie. Still, there was one bit of shimmer of hope to this story."

Taking a deep breath, Seto said "The last student to be taken, he was found this year."

Shocked, Illidan asked "Where?"

Seto's smile vanished as he seriously said "He was found to be one of seven people that attacked Duel Academy this year known as Shadow Riders. They were people who possessed a Shadow Charm each, and dueled to unlock the Sacred Beast Cards."

Illidan only lightly gasped and asked "So, was he alright? How was it he was a Shadow Rider controlling a Shadow Charm?"

Nodding, Seto replied "He was fine. After he was beaten in a duel, whatever was controlling him was locked away within a card. He was freed from the darkness that controlled his body, allowing him to continue on. Later on, when his memories returned, he told of why he had gone to the dorm. It seems a teacher had called him there, only to find himself in a Shadow Game. He lost, and became controlled by a dark force that sent him out to free the Sacred Beasts."

"I see." Illidan simply said as he took in all the information. He then added "By the way, we know the Sacred Beasts were freed. What happened?"

Semi serious, Seto replied "The former superintendent of the school was the one behind the Shadow Riders. He took possession of the Sacred Beasts and challenged the one duelist who had beaten back most of the Shadow Riders to a Shadow Duel. The two dueled, with the guy using the Sacred Beast Cards. In the end, the student beat the superintendent, thus saving the world from being drained of it's energy by the Sacred Beasts."

Nodding, Illidan said "Yeah, we felt the energies of the Duel Spirits being drained. Luckily, our decks were unaffected."

Nodding back, Seto simply replied "As was mine. I believe that due to our stronger spirits, the Sacred Beasts couldn't absorb our decks power, hence we were safe. I'd say the same thing happened with the other former Shadow Court members as well."

Realizing something, Illidan then asked "What was it you need me to check into? We got so far off track with you telling us what happened that it slipped my mind."

Lightly chuckling, Seto replied "True. Anyways, I need the two of you to check out the four shrines. Make sure your seals are truly holding Illidan, and make sure no Shadow Magic is somehow materializing on the island in the wrong hands."

Nodding, Illidan simply said "No problem. We'll make sure that the seals are definitely working properly. I have a feeling three out of four are. The fourth though, I'm beginning to wonder since you told us about the incidents at the Anubis Dorm."

Standing up, Seto replied "True. I'm not sure if that's what is happening, or if something else has happened. I went to check the shrines myself last year, and none were disturbed. Each year I've checked them, and none are still disturbed, but I still get the feeling something isn't right. It's that feeling I got when Gozaburo Tark finished the Millennium Crown and gave us a look that just told me something was wrong."

Standing as well, Illidan nodded, saying "Yeah, I know the feeling."

Smirking, Seto said "Now, it's time to take you two down to the fun part of my job: paperwork."

Both Illidan and Marie groaned, each muttering "I hate paperwork."

"Get used to it. After all, you'll soon be grading tests, reading papers, and having to deal with teenagers who think they're king of the world." Seto said playfully.

"Wonderful…" Illidan said sarcastically.

"Oh yes, I forgot. Your starting date is officially August 18th. That is the first day of class, but you must be at the academy by the 15th so you can prepare to greet the students. Besides, I'm sure you'll want to move some stuff to the academy. Your small house will be supplied with furniture, computers, and so on. Also, you can put in an order for what you want once you get there, and I'll get it for you. Of course, it'll come out of your pay." Seto snidely said.

Both Illidan and Marie growled softly, making Seto rethink his offer while sweat dropping, and say "I mean, of course I'll pick up the tab. After all, I couldn't make my two friends pay for something from their own checks."

Smiling triumphantly, both Illidan and Marie nodded. Seto breathed a sigh of relief and said "Come on, let's get this paperwork over and done with so I can go pester Joey for a duel. I need to thrash someone, and it might as well be him."

The trio only laughed at the comment as they headed for the elevator.


	8. Chapter 8: Preparations

**Hello once again everyone! Well, this week has been somewhat dull for the most part, although I have had fun playing on Warcraft 3. There is a custom game on there called Shinobi War, which if no one has any clue, deals with Naruto. It's lots of fun, and I almost always get into a game of it once or twice a day. Always so much fun, lol.**

**Last time, Seto explained why he wished for our favorite heroes to go to Duel Academy, plus the truth about what really happened with the disappearances on the island. Also, the truth about the Abandoned Dorm was released, that it once was the Anubis Dorm. Now the question is, what will happen when the pair arrive?**

**Alright, it's time once again to get to the reviews! (/Cranks up 'Gai's theme' from Naruto.\) Ah! Horrible visions of Gai in that freaking green jumpsuit!**

**Isis the Sphinx: Yeah, don't worry about the chapter thing. I'm unsure why that happened myself. It's odd. Yes, they're friends. Ten years of dueling one another would have to get you somewhere, lol. (/Points at flying pig. Also points at Spider Pig (Simpson's movie commercials, lol).\) Thanks for the comments.**

**Very Swampeh: No prob. Yeah, Isis said the same thing about 4-7 not loading. Could have just been a glitch I suppose. Yep, Seto has changed a good bit. Things will get interesting I'm sure with the GX people running around. Yes, curse paperwork and all it's evil!!!**

**x-knight20: Thank you. Lol, yes, the paperwork of DOOM!!!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Yes, things are finally coming together. True, he's not officially lost a duel, but remember, between stories, him and Marie have been alone, and I did account that him and her traded wins back and forth. So, he's not undefeated all the time. Where him and Marie duel one another so often, they occasionally beat one another, so like I said, he's not invincible. As for will Illidan lose in one of my stories, well, we'll see how this one goes. I thought about him losing in **_**The Wolves Seal**_**, but I decided to have him stay alive. This time around though, who knows, he may lose a duel, or he may win them all. You just never know. (/Winks.\)**

**Well, that's it for today. Hopefully, in the near future, I'll be able to post 3 chapters a week. We'll see. It all hinges on my ability to finish writing this story. Time will tell I suppose.**

**Till next time everyone, take it easy and enjoy this chapter. Oh yes, don't forget, leave a review so I can continue the craziness of the review answering session, lol.**

**Chapter 8**

Nearly three months passed by since Illidan had dueled Seto, and the time to finally move to Duel Academy arrived. While waiting, Seto had paid for the two to live in a small house he had along the beach. Both were grateful, for now they had a place to leave their stuff they didn't want to take with them to Duel Academy.

The two had also earned checks throughout the waiting period, which they thought was generous of Seto as well. In turn, the two had helped him out with several things, like tutoring sessions with some summer school students at local schools, as well as helping teach younger kids to duel in his place. As well, the two studied hard, preparing their curriculum for the fall semester.

Finally the day arrived for the two to head out. It was marked with a bright red circle on their calendar. The date was August 13th, which was a Wednesday. The two hoped to rest up somewhat that night and then unpack on Thursday, which would give them enough time hopefully before the students started arriving, which would begin on Friday through Sunday.

Their apartment was cluttered with many boxes, many belonging to Marie, which Illidan jokingly complained about. "I thought we were just taking what we needed, not the entire thing." he playfully said aloud.

Marie's response was swift, as she came out of the backroom holding one of Illidan's bokkens (wooden sword) in her hand. "What was that!?" she snarled.

Sweat dropping, Illidan simply replied "Uh, nothing…"

"Thought so." was all she said as she turned to finish pulling stuff out to be taken with them.

Letting out a small sigh of relief, he smirked when he remembered his former teacher in ancient times had one lesson on having a wife. "_An important lesson to always remember is this one Illidan. Never make your wife mad when she has a weapon in hand._" Squall had said that the day he had literally been knocked out by his wife, Rinoa, for doing something entirely too reckless. This lesson of course had come after he'd managed to awaken several hours later.

Looking around the apartment, Illidan made a final check to see if everything he wanted was packed. He mentally checked off the items he was taking, and finally was satisfied that he had indeed packed all the things he wanted to take with him. Marie had of course checked her own stuff off, and made absolutely sure not to leave a thing behind she couldn't do without.

At long last, the door bell rang, causing Illidan to call out "I'll get it."

He quickly walked up to the door to find the movers standing behind it. "You Illidan Stormrage?" the guy closest to the door asked.

Illidan simply nodded and the guy said "We're the moving company Mr. Kaiba hired. Can we come in?"

Again, Illidan nodded and showed them in. The crew looked around at the spacious apartment for a moment, seemingly taking in the sights in it.

Pointing at the boxes neatly stacked up, Illidan said "These are the boxes to go. All of them are labeled, with these front ten being breakables. Please do be careful with them, for I think my wife would kill someone if you broke them."

The mover that had spoken to Illidan chuckled and nodded, saying "Of course sir. We'll be especially careful with them."

Smiling back, Illidan nodded as the group got to work. One by one, the movers picked up stacks of the boxes and began taking them out of the apartment.

After five minutes, Marie finally came into the room lugging two big suitcases. "That's all I need." she said while she flopped down onto the couch, seemingly completely exhausted.

"Oh? I figured you only needed one change of clothes for the day." Illidan teased as he walked over and lightly nibbled on her ear.

Marie lightly gasped at the act, but then pushed him back, saying "I need clothes to wear to class, you silly boy."

Smirking, Illidan replied "You get a uniform to wear for the school, so no worries."

Shaking her head, Marie only sighed, saying "Such a silly boy."

Sitting down beside her, he simply replied "But of course. Would you have me any other way?"

She smirked and shook her head, saying "Of course not."

The two were inches from kissing when they heard someone clear their voice. Slightly grumbling, both turned to find the movers back. "We've finished loading all the boxes you had sir. Is that all?" spoke the one Illidan had been speaking to for the most part.

"That's all. Thank you." Illidan simply replied, wishing the man to leave immediately.

Nodding, the man slightly bowed and said "Very well. The car to come get you will be here in an hour. Mr. Kaiba asked for me to relay you that message. Your things should be at Duel Academy time you arrive. Good day."

The men then turned and left, leaving Illidan and Marie an hour before time to leave for Duel Academy. Knowing what was on her mind still, Illidan nibbled lightly on Marie's neck, getting a small gasp of pleasure.

"Oh, come on now, we only have an hour to finish getting ready." Marie protested, although her heart wasn't entirely in the protest.

Cupping her cheek as he continued to nibble, a muffled voice said "Plenty of time."

After a few more moments, Marie finally relaxed against his body, allowing him to have free reign over her. Smiling triumphantly, Illidan pulled back and picked her up in his arms, carrying her bridal style into the bedroom and shutting the door behind them.

A knock on the door ruined the whole moment a few minutes later. Illidan growled somewhat loudly as he quickly pulled his shirt back on. They had only begun removing clothes before he heard the knock. Marie was quick to scramble and get her pants and shirt back on.

About ready to rip the door off the hinges, Illidan stopped at the door and attempted to calm himself. "_This had better be very, very important._" he deeply growled in his mind as he felt the heat still consuming his body and mind.

After another knock, he took a deep breath and opened the door, finding a man in a driver's hat standing there. "Hello sir, are you by chance Illidan Stormrage?" the man asked.

Illidan nodded and the man quickly added "I'm here to pick you and Mrs. Marie Stormrage up to take you to the airport."

"You're early." Illidan snarled, trying hard to keep his anger in check.

Sensing the hostility, the driver became flustered, but replied "Yes, I know, and I'm sorry about that, but I always try to show up to a job early."

Looking at his watch, the driver sheepishly smiled, saying "Oh my, I'm nearly an hour early. Well, sorry about that. If you like, I can wait a while, or if you two are ready now…"

"Hold on a few minutes. We're almost ready." Illidan snidely commented, still trying hard to suppress his anger.

"Alright sir. I shall wait out in the car for you." the driver replied as he bowed and then walked back away from the door.

Slamming the door shut, Illidan walked back into the apartment and let out a primal roar of frustration. Marie, who was coming into the room, shrieked lightly at the roar and stepped back.

Seeing that the roar helped him calm down, she asked "Feel better now?"

Sighing, Illidan replied in a depressed voice "No… Can I kill him?"

Bursting out loud laughing, she shook her head no, saying "No, we don't need any dead bodies here before we leave. Besides, if you did that, Kaiba would have to hire an attorney and all, and he'd complain about those costs too."

"True…" Illidan said as he moved in front of Marie and took her into his arms.

In a low whisper, he said into her ear "Later there will be no distractions to stop us."

A small shiver ran up Marie's back as Illidan's hot breath had hit her ear. She smiled and whispered back in his ear "I hope so, because I will get you back for earlier."

"I hope so." was the only reply Illidan gave as he turned away.

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A day later, after a well spent night, both Illidan and Marie found themselves walking up to the administrative building for Duel Academy. They had spent part of the early morning looking over the dorm, trying hard to get at least semi familiar with the building.

Once they had familiarized themselves enough, the two then headed home only to find a note on their door asking them to report to the main building to meet with Chancellor Shepherd.

Now the two were walking along the main walk, hand in hand, dressed in business casual clothing. Marie had on a black skirt that went to her knees, and wore a white blouse. Illidan had decided to pick a pair of black khaki pants, and wore a white long sleeved business shirt to match.

Both walked straight into the building to find a secretary at the front. She informed them what room to walk to, and the floor level. The two quickly headed for an elevator and arrived at the destination in no time.

Once entering the room, they found a rather medium sized room with a secretary sitting in front of a set of doors. She looked up and smiled at the pair, motioning them on into the room ahead. Both nodded and passed by her to enter the next room.

In this room sat three men and three women in front of a large desk, where another man sat behind. The first two men and one woman wore blue, although the one man had a darker shade of blue on. The other man and two women wore yellow. The man behind the desk wore a maroon colored outfit.

Looking up, the man in maroon smiled, saying "Ah, there you two are. Please, come on in Mr. and Mrs. Stormrage."

Both softly smiled at the warm welcome and came on into the room, taking a seat in the remaining two chairs.

"I take it you two had a good trip to the island?" the man asked. He was bald, had dark brown eyes, a brown beard, and appeared to have a heavy set body build. His clothing consisted of a red maroon jacket and black pants.

Smiling back, Illidan replied "Yes, we did."

Nodding, the man replied "Good to hear. Well, to start things off, we'll do some introductions. My name is Chancellor Sheppard, and I run the school."

Nodding towards an oddly dressed man in blue on the left, the man stood and cleared his throat. He had blonde hair in a long pony tail that was bound up. He appeared to have violet or some shade of blue lips, wore a blue coat that had pink ruffle sleeves and a pink ruffle collar, and finally had black pants.

In an annoying like voice, he said "My name is Dr. Vellian Crowler, and I am the headmaster of the Obelisk Blue Dorm."

The man beside him, who was extremely short, rather round, had a bald head with two patches of hair pointing out, and wore a darker blue uniform stood up.

With a French accent, the man said "The name is Bonaparte. I am Dr. Crowler's assistant."

The woman then sitting beside the two stood up. She had brown hair that was pulled to the side so it sat on her shoulder. It's length was around her shoulder blade. She wore a white and blue uniform top with a blue skirt that came up above her knees.

She smiled softly and said "My name is Louisa Linden. I'm headmaster of the girls Obelisk Blue Dorm."

The man on the side of the girl then stood up and smiled. He had shoulder length black hair with a black mustache. He wore a yellow coat uniform with grey matching pants.

In a thick Spanish accent, he said "Welcome to Duel Academy, my new amigos. My name is Professor Vincent Satyr. I am the headmaster of the Ra Dorm."

Standing up, the young lady beside him smiled. She had dark green eyes, long purple hair that reached her butt, and a kind smile. She wore a yellow and white uniform top with a yellow skirt that came to above her knees.

Kindly, she said "Hello, my name is Izumi Triune. I am the counterpart to Vincent, for I am headmaster to the girls Ra Dorm."

The other young woman, who seemed slightly younger, had long black silky looking hair that went to her mid back, and she had violet eyes. Like Izumi, she sported the same yellow and white top, along with a yellow skirt that came above her knees.

Smiling at the two, she said "My name is Tyranda Whisperwind. I'm pleased to meet you two. I'm a student teacher to both Headmaster Triune and Satyr."

Turning back to Illidan and Marie, Chancellor Sheppard then said "Now, if you would, please introduce yourselves."

Nodding, Illidan kindly said "My name is Illidan Stormrage."

Marie then smiled and said "And I am his wife, Marie Stormrage."

The group all nodded and the Chancellor made a sitting motion for everyone. Once all were in their seats, he said "Now, you two are to become the new Slifer Headmasters I understand."

Looking at the Chancellor immediately, Crowler spoke up, squawking "Chancellor, on what grounds are they being hired!? I've never heard of any Stormrage before, so what makes either of them capable of being a teacher, much less a headmaster of a dorm!"

Adding in, Bonaparte said "Also, I think we should just bid a farewell to the Slifers. They're nothing but a bad mark on this school."

Turning to look at both that had spoken, the Chancellor calmly replied "First of all, I do not question the credibility of these two. They were hired by our school's founder and owner. If he wishes to hire two teachers, it is his business. Second, as for their credentials, they have plenty. When I received their paperwork, I received a video of a duel for Mr. Stormrage here. He dueled with our owner, and won the duel nonetheless. That in itself proved his ability to duel. Also, both have master's degrees, with Illidan having one in Egyptian History, and Marie having one in Mathematics. That alone proves good choices."

Taking a moment to close his eyes, the Chancellor then reopened them, saying with a hint of anger in his voice "Finally, as for the Slifers, they will not be removed. This school was founded on having three dorms, and it will stay that way! As told before, if you have a problem with this, take it up with the owner!"

Bonaparte and Crowler were both taken aback by these words, but finally settled down. Seeing this, Illidan lightly chuckled inwardly at the seemingly quick cowardliness the two displayed.

Finally, the mood in the room turned back to normal, and Illidan spoke up, saying "Just so everyone knows, we were not hired by the owner just due to our schooling degrees. We have had past experience in dueling, with some minor Pro League work. In fact, we've both competed against the owner before, and each of us has at least one win over him."

The Chancellor nodded, seemingly taking this on seriously. Dr. Crowler however only scowled, muttering "Whoever the owner is must be a complete loser."

Marie growled lightly at that comment, and was about to give Crowler a verbal tongue lashing when Illidan grabbed her hand and silently sent a mental message using his Shadow Powers. "_Calm down. They don't know that it's Seto most likely. I think the Chancellor does, but the other ninny doesn't, so play dumb for now._"

Instantly, Marie relaxed and closed her eyes, trying hard to calm herself. After a moment, she opened her eyes once more and smiled. She sweetly said "I think a duel with him would change your mind Professor Crowler."

Crowler now glared at Marie, yelling "My title is Dr. thank you very much!"

Marie only shrugged, not really caring what his title was. Illidan looked at the Chancellor, whom was hiding his laughter. He also noticed that the other teachers, other than Bonaparte, were all chuckling as well.

Finally, the meeting settled down, and the Chancellor went on with explaining Illidan and Marie's duties, their class times, and what they were to do during evening hours. After two hours, the meeting was coming to a close, with the Chancellor asking both the new headmasters to stay behind to speak in private.

After all the others had left, the Chancellor sighed and then smiled at the two. "As you saw, the Obelisk Blue Headmaster is a bit wound up. And since he got his personal assistant this year, his ego has doubled. But don't let him bother you too much. Even though he's an ego maniac, Crowler is a caring headmaster deep down who does care for his students, whether he shows that he likes them or not."

Both nodded to the Chancellor, seemingly understanding. The Chancellor smiled again, saying "Now, there is a small matter to address. The two of you will be having a student teacher under you as well."

Illidan raised an eyebrow to this, asking "Are you serious?"

Nodding, the Chancellor replied "Yes, and he is familiar with this school. You see, he graduated last year as the top ranking student. His name is Zane Truesdale. He will be under the two of you for this year. Next year is up in the air. He was going to go to the Pro League, but I convinced him to stick around and help teach this year. He agreed, but wanted to work with the Slifer Dorm. Naturally, I agreed."

Relaxing back in his chair, the Chancellor pulled his hands together onto his desk, saying "He has only one loss, which really doesn't count due that he was forced to lose. It was during the Shadow Rider invasion last year. His brother was held hostage and would have lost his soul if Zane had won the duel, but rather than lose his brother, he gave up the duel. His only other blemish on his record was at this past year's Graduation Duel. In it, he faced the highest ranked duelist from the freshman class, named Jaden Yuki."

Marie spoke up, saying "I've heard of him. Him and Chazz Princeston dueled on television last year during the School Duel, right?"

Lightly chuckling, the Chancellor nodded, adding "Yes, he did. He won that duel, although the TV transmission was cut before it could be witnessed. Anyways, Jaden is an accomplished young duelist, and managed to mar Zane's record by tying him in the final duel of the year. I would almost guess that the two are truly even in dueling skill."

Illidan interrupted, asking "This Jaden Yuki, he's a Slifer duelist, isn't he?"

Smiling again, the Chancellor replied "Correct you are, and is the true pride of the Slifer Dorm. I think that is why the owner of this school sent the two of you. He wants the two of you to refine the Slifers, and to turn them into a truly elite dorm. For years now, the Slifers have been said to be the lowly members of the school, but Jaden and Chazz proved last year that the Slifer Dorm isn't to be taken lightly. There is much talent within the Slifer Dorm, but it just has to be given a chance to develop. Since everyone labels the Slifers as weak, they rarely get a chance to prove themselves in a duel."

Nodding, Illidan said "Very true, but the Slifer students may just need a bit of encouragement also. That always helps duelists push a little harder."

Smiling and nodding, the Chancellor remarked "Yes, it does, and that's why I believe the two of you along with Zane can make the Slifers truly competitive this year."

Standing up, Illidan smiled and replied "I truly hope so. We'll give them all we have and hope that things turn out good in the end."

Standing as well, the Chancellor said "That's all I ask for. Well, it's late, so we should adjourn for the day. Tomorrow will be a busy day. The students will probably start arriving around noon, so be ready."

Both Illidan and Marie nodded, with Marie saying "We'll do our best sir."

Illidan started to turn, but stopped, asking "By the way, when will Zane be arriving?"

Thinking for a moment, the Chancellor replied "He should be arriving in the next hour or so. He'll be staying in the room in the dorm that our old headmaster stayed in. The three of you should try to get together tonight before very late."

Nodding, Illidan and Marie then turned and left the room, leaving the Chancellor to say to himself "Those two, along with Zane, will make this year quite interesting. I just hope they can do the job that Banner started."


	9. Chapter 9: Proof of Strength: Pt 1

**Hey there everyone! So, this past weekend wasn't bad. Not too much happened, other than my mate's mom and her niece came to visit. I went and fetched her Sunday and it was a decent time. Other than that, nothing is new really.**

**In case anyone is curious, I am nearing the end of the writing process of this story, meaning more chapters will be posted during the week. I've been only posting two due that I've not finished this story, but when I finish, I'll kick that up to three instead, making myself, and everyone else happy I'm sure. So, please be patient with me. I'm working on finishing up, but it just takes time, plus I have to think a good bit on the chapters. Again, I will hopefully have it done soon, maybe within the next few weeks, meaning the posting process will speed up then, I hope.**

**Btw, in case anyone was curious, I did stage this story for the second season of GX. You see, when the first season ended, I lazily looked for the next season, but saw none coming. So, I decided to create my own second season. Of course, by the time I had gotten a bit into this story, the second season began at long last, lol. But it worked out, seeing how I was able to find new cards to add on, as well as characters and so on. At any rate, just so everyone knows, yes, this is staged for year two for Jaden. I figure most have guessed that since Seto spoke of things that had happened in the first season, but I wanted to clarify it for everyone just in case.**

**Last time, Illidan and Marie finally arrived at Duel Academy and met the other headmasters, and found out they would have a student teacher in the form of Zane. What new things will happen this time, and the question is, where is Zane?**

**But for now, it is that most wonderful time for me! That's right, it's review time! (/Queue's music to play.\)**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Lol, you're the first person to say interesting about it, hehe. Yep, the dynamic duo are finally at Duel Academy and are prepared to start things off. You never know, the Society of Light could be there… Or not, lol. True about Sheppard leaving and leaving Crowler in charge in the second season, but as I said above, this was prior to me finding out there was a second season, so I had no idea, lol. But yes, I apparently decided to bring Zane back, along with Sheppard.**

**x-knight20: Thanks. He's not a tutor, more like a student teacher, which is his role, lol.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Lol, we never got a first honeymoon, unfortunately. Although, we are due to go to the beach soon, which we'll call our first, lol. Thanks for the comments, and yeah, I tried some light humor for Crowler, lol. Yes, suspense is always good, hehe.**

**Very Swampeh: Yep, he's back. (/Imagines the Terminator saying that and chuckles.\) Oh yeah, getting back to the review, yes, he's back on the island. True, it sucked he graduated, but at least he was semi-successful at the Pro League in the show. Lol, yes, things will be interesting with Crowler in the picture. The school days are coming soon.**

**Alright, that's all the reviews for this time around. I hope you all enjoy this chapter. I promise, I shall try to finish up this story so I can post more chapters a week, but like I said before, it'll take some time. I'll have it all done soon though, I hope. Till then, I hope to see lots of reviews, which keep urging me to finish this up in my mind.**

**Enjoy the chapter everyone!**

**Chapter 9**

A few hours later, after some alone time, a shower, and a quick dinner, Marie and Illidan headed out to find Zane. It was already growing dark on the island, with the stars slowly starting to peak out and the moon lazily rising.

The two first searched the Slifer Dorm room where Zane was due to live in, but only found his bags laying in the room. They waited an hour for him to return, but finally gave up and began to look around. At nearly nine that night, they were ready to give up when they saw a lone figure standing down at the lighthouse.

Seeing this, the two quickly made their way to the lighthouse to find a young man standing there. He had green mid-back length hair with matching green eyes. He wore a white and red coat, with black matching pants. His eyes were cold and hard, much like his expression. Behind the hardness though was a softness, but it was quite well hidden.

Smiling, Illidan called out "So there you are Mr. Truesdale. We've been looking everywhere for you."

Turning to face the two, a small smile crept up on his face, as he softly said "Oh? You two must be the new headmasters of the Slifer Dorm. It was Illidan and Marie, correct?"

Both nodded and Zane made a slight formal bow. "I'm honored to finally meet the two of you. Chancellor Sheppard told me about the two of you. It's nice to meet you both."

The two smiled and Illidan extended his hand, saying "It's an honor to meet you too. I understand you were the top student last year."

Nodding in reply, Zane simply said "Yes, I graduated top of my class."

"With an undefeated record, minus that tie with Jaden Yuki." Marie chimed in.

Slightly smiling, Zane nodded, saying "Correct."

"That's an outstanding record you've created. Do you prefer to be called Zane or Mr. Truesdale?" Illidan asked politely.

Smiling, Zane replied "Zane is fine."

Nodding, Illidan said "Alright. You can call me Illidan, and of course, this is my wife, Marie."

Zane simply nodded, and Illidan continued, saying "Well, we just wanted to meet you for a few minutes and get to know you a bit. Anything you want to ask us?"

Smirking softly, Zane replied "Yes, there is. Would you fancy a duel?"

Illidan was somewhat shocked by this challenge, saying "You mean duel right here and now?"

Zane simply nodded, saying "Of course. If the two of you are to lead the Slifer Dorm, I need to know how strong you all are. So, how about it Illidan?"

"I have a better idea." Marie piped up. "I'll duel you!"

Turning in shock to Marie, Illidan asked "Are you sure?"

She simply smiled, saying "I'm very sure. So, how about that Zane? Want to duel me?"

Shrugging, Zane replied "That works for me. I need to know what to expect from the two of you dueling wise so we can see how to help the students."

Turning away to fetch something lying on the ground, Zane walked over to the object and picked it up. Instantly, the two recognized it as a Duel Disk. Marie slightly smiled as Illidan pulled his backpack off and handed her his new Duel Disk.

"Good luck Marie." Illidan said happily as he gave her a kiss on the cheek and then walked out of the two's way.

Zane pulled his deck from his Duel Disk and began to shuffle as Marie pulled hers from her deck holder on her belt. The two soon had their decks shuffled and placed them in their Duel Disks. Each then backed up enough to leave enough room between the two of them to duel.

Each calmly called out "Game on!" as their Duel Disks came to life. The arm on each Duel Disk pushed out, and then the hidden inside blade shot out to widen the playing field.

The two picked up five cards, and Zane calmly called out "Ladies first."

Picking up her sixth card, Marie calmly said "How polite of you."

Looking over her hand, she saw she had Mystical Shine Ball, Petit Angel, Shift, Soul of Purity and Light, Human-Wave Tactics, and her newly drawn Graceful Charity. Slightly smirking at her hand, she then showed her new card, saying "Now, watch as I first play the spell card Graceful Charity! Thanks to this, I can draw three new cards, but I must discard two from my hand when I'm done."

Drawing three new cards at once, Marie examined her hand to find Draining Shield, Spirit of the Harp, and The Unhappy Maiden. Picking out two other cards from her hand, she turned them to show Zane, saying "I send my Mystical Shine Ball and Petit Angel to the Graveyard. But they won't stay there long, for I'm removing both from play in order to special summon Soul of Purity and Light (2000/1800) in attack mode!"

An angel like female monster with blonde hair and blue eyes then appeared on the field in a flash of light. She appeared translucent, but was somewhat solid as well. She had powerful looking white wings attached to her back and slightly spread them as she touched down onto the field.

"Next, I'll summon my Spirit of the Harp (800/2000) in defense mode." A woman in a yellow set of robes then appeared on the field stroking a harp. She took a seat and slightly smiled.

"Finally, I'll place two cards face down. Let's see what you've got now Zane." (Marie 8000, Zane 8000)

Drawing, Zane confidently replied "Very well, I'll start by special summoning my Cyber Dragon (2100/1600) to the field in attack mode." A metal snake like dragon then appeared onto the field and let out a mechanical roar.

Marie was somewhat surprised by the choice of the monster, but wasn't entirely shocked. Zane saw this, and said "I see you've seen this monster before. Well, just to refresh you, I can special summon it due that you have a monster out and I have none, which activated it's effect. Now Cyber Dragon, attack her Soul of Purity and Light with Strident Blaze!"

Lightly chuckling at Zane's hasty move, Marie called out "Bad move there Zane. You see, during your Battle Phase, my Soul of Purity and Light's effect kicks in! She now lowers all of your monsters attack points by 300 (2100 - 300 1800/1600)!"

The translucent angel slightly glowed with white light as the machine dragon glowed lightly too. Seeing this, Zane still remained calm, saying "No matter, continue your attack my dragon!"

That said, the dragon let out a small machine roar and fired a stream of red flames at the angel creature.

As the attack was nearing, Zane lightly smirked, saying "I activate the spell card Trap Booster! Now by discarding one card from my hand, I can activate a trap card, so I'll send my Cyber Laser Dragon to the Graveyard. Now I can activate my trap card known as Reverse Trap! This trap card now returns all attack and defense points to their original strength, so that means my dragon is now stronger than your little fairy (2100/1600)!"

The flaming blast speeding towards the angel like creature intensified, making the angel back away slightly.

Slightly smirking, Marie called out "No way is she going down, for I have a trap myself! Go Shift! Thanks to this card, I can change the target of your monster, so I choose to have your dragon hit my Spirit of the Harp instead!"

Nodding back to Marie, the yellow robbed woman leapt in front of the flaming stream and took the hit for the translucent angel.

Smiling slightly, Zane simply replied "Well played, but I'm far from through. I'll place a card face down and let you have a shot." (Marie 8000, Zane 8000)

Drawing a card, Marie looked over Zane's field. "_Hmm, he only has Cyber Dragon and a face down. He also has only one card left in his hand too, so that helps me somewhat. Still, I have to be careful with my moves._"

Looking over her own hand, she decided it was better to take her chances. "_If I don't take up the offensive now, I'll never take him down. He's more offensive than defense, so I have to hit him hard. Well, here goes something._"

Picking the card she had just drawn into her hand, Marie said "I'll start by summoning my Majestic Mech – Ohka (2400/1400) in attack mode." A lion like creature made up of red and pink energy with powerful energy wings then roared onto the field. It's tail was made like a pink blade, and a majority of it's body glowed brightly.

"Wait, that's a level six monster! How did you summon it to the field?" Zane asked with great curiosity.

Winking at Zane, Marie replied "It's all about the special effects. Like your Cyber Dragon, my monster has a little help in being summoned. I can normal summon it without a tribute, but the down side of doing that is it's destroyed in my End Phase. That won't matter too much for now though. Ohka, move in and attack that dragon with Fairy Mech Flame!"

The pink and red energy lion roared loudly and leapt forward, releasing a stream of pink energy flames at the mechanical dragon. With a single blast, the dragon was shattered into millions of pieces, leaving Zane wide open.

"Soul of Purity and Light, direct attack with Shining Wing Blast!" Taking perfect aim, the translucent angel spread her wings and focused a blast of white energy in front of her body. She then released the blast straight at Zane, who only stared on.

At the last moment, Zane called out "I'm sorry, but I can't allow that. I activate the trap card Call of the Haunted, which allows me to bring back my Cyber Dragon (2100/1600) in attack mode."

A blinding light shot out as the mechanical dragon reappeared onto the field, letting out a machine roar.

Seeing this, Marie said "Since you brought a monster back, I have a choice of target, but I'll choose to not attack now. Instead, I'll place a card face down, and end my turn. Of course, now that I'm ending, my Ohka goes to the Graveyard." That said, the energy creature burned out and instantly vanished.

"That's it for me." (Marie 8000, Zane 7700)

Calmly drawing and looking at his card, Zane said "Not bad, but now I play the spell card Pot of Greed! I get to draw two new cards."

Flipping one card over in his hand to show Marie, Zane calmly said "I play the spell card Power Bond! Here is how it works. I can use this card like a fusion card to create a Machine type Fusion monster, so I fuse the Cyber Dragon on the field with the one in my hand to create Cyber Twin Dragon (2800/2000)."

A second machine dragon appeared onto the field and let out a small mechanical roar. The two machine dragons began swirling together, creating a new blinding light. As the light died, a new dragon with twin heads and necks connected to a large midsection with a large tail appeared.

"Thanks to Power Bond, my dragon's points are now doubled (2800 2 5600/2000)." The dragon roared loudly, causing electricity to come off of it's body. It's strength quickly doubled, making it a much more formidable foe.

"Of course, there is an interesting side effect to Power Bond's use. During my End Phase, I lose points equal to the original points of my fusion monster. Still, it's well worth it I'd say. Time to cut to the chase, so Cyber Twin Dragon, attack her Soul of Purity and Light with Double Strident Blaze!"

Quickly cutting in, Marie called out "Don't forget Zane, your dragon loses 300 attack points thanks to my monster." As before, the translucent fairy glowed softly as the dragon's strength decreased (5600 - 300 5300/2000).

Confidently, Zane replied "No matter, for my dragon is stronger. Continue your attack now!"

The dragon reared back it's twin heads and released a red flaming blaze of fire from the twin heads jaws.

As the blaze was about to take out the angel, Marie pointed her left hand at her face down card, saying "Go trap card, my Draining Shield! Now that attack is negated, and your monster's attack points are added to my life points!"

A large yellow shield appeared in front of the angel creature and absorbed the blast. The energy from the blast then flew overhead to Marie's Duel Disk, which glowed as her life points increased.

Unfazed, Zane replied "You'll need those points Marie, cause my dragon has a special ability of it's own. It can attack twice in a turn, so go, attack with Double Strident Blaze again!"

The dragon once more released a blaze of flames from it's twin heads. This time, Marie could only watch in horror as her angel was struck and incinerated.

"I'll next summon my Cyber Kirin (800/800) to the field in attack mode." A large silver mechanical dog then appeared on the field with a small howl.

"I activate his effect, which allows me to sacrifice him to the Graveyard. All damage I'd receive this turn due to effects is reduced to zero, which means I receive none of the Power Bond damage. That shall end my turn." (Marie 10000, Zane 7700)

Picking up another card, Marie pondered what to do. "_If I play this, I get some cards, but I could get more if I wait. Alright, I'll wait, but I hope I don't regret this._"

Silently agreeing with herself, she placed the card back in her hand and picked up the lone card remaining, saying "I set one monster on the field in defense mode, and place a card face down. That's it for me." (Marie 10000, Zane 7700)

Drawing with complete calmness, Zane replied "That's all, what a shame. Go Cyber Twin Dragon, attack that monster with Double Strident Blaze!"

Before the dragon had a chance to attack, Marie called out "Not so fast Zane, for I have a trap. I reveal Human-Wave Tactics! The way this card works is when a level two or lower monster is destroyed, I get to special summon a new level two or lower monster from my deck during the End Phase of the same turn the previous monster was destroyed."

Shrugging as his dragon was releasing it's flaming attack, Zane replied "You'll need it, but unfortunately for you, it won't help this turn!"

The flaming streams of fire quickly launched across the field and struck the face down monster card image, which shattered to reveal a girl with mid-back length dark orange hair. She wore a blue dress that nearly touched her knees and wore dark orange shoes. She was instantly obliterated by the attack.

Zane quickly called out "Cyber Twin Dragon, attack her directly this time!"

As the dragon was about to attack, it then stopped, leaving Zane perplexed. "Why did you stop dragon?"

Lightly giggling, Marie waved the card that had just been destroyed at him. "You can't attack due that you just destroyed my The Unhappy Maiden (0/100). When she goes to the Graveyard due to battle, the Battle Phase ends automatically."

Taking the remaining card in his hand, Zane placed it in a spell/trap slot, saying "I'll end with a face down." (Marie 10000, Zane 7700)

Shaking her head, Marie called out "Not so fast there Zane, did you forget my trap? Well, I didn't, so now it activates. My monster was a level one, so I get a new level two or lower monster."

Pulling her deck out, she examined it and finally picked a card, saying as she slapped it to her Duel Disk "Meet my Spirit of the Pot of Greed (100/100), and I'll place it in attack mode."

A green pot with blue trim and a goblin like face then appeared on the field. In the top of it, a small green spirit appeared to be lurking in it.

Drawing a new card, Marie said "I now reveal my face down spell card, Pot of Greed. I get to draw two new cards thanks to this."

Picking up two cards, the small spirit in the pot laughed, and glowed brighter. "By the way, when Pot of Greed is played with Spirit of the Pot of Greed on the field in attack mode, I get to draw an additional card."

Once more picking up another card, Marie stared at her new hand. "_This is exactly what I needed to turn that clunker of a dragon into scrap metal._"

Seeing this, Illidan lightly smiled. "_She chose to summon that monster last turn especially for this. She's getting better and better each duel._"

Zane still seemed unfazed, but Marie continued saying "I place two cards face down and switch my Spirit of the Pot of Greed to defense." (Marie 10000, Zane 7700)


	10. Chapter 10: Proof of Strength, Pt 2

**Hello everyone once more! Well, this week has seemingly flown by to me. Seems like only yesterday it was Monday, but I know it wasn't. I guess it's mostly due that I'm looking forward to my upcoming vacation in a little over a week. A week from Saturday, I'll be headed out to Myrtle Beach, SC, for some nice R&R. I'm taking my laptop, so hopefully, pending on if I have a decent connection, I'll be able to post chapters that week.**

**Lol, something silly, I'm sure that no one cares about, but when I'm writing, I've gotten in to the habit of turning on some theme songs from Naruto. Heh, I've even decided who some themes go to when a duel is going on. Oddly enough, I deemed "**_**Jiraiya's Theme**_**" to Illidan, lol. It starts out rather interesting, but the song is pretty good. If you ever get on YouTube, check it out. I figured I'd just share that little tid-bit with you guys.**

**Last time, the happy couple found Zane, who didn't waste any time in challenging one of them to a duel. Marie has stepped up to the plate, and so far, she'd doing decently against the former top student. Can Marie win this duel, or will Zane get the best of her?**

**Alright, it's finally time, so queue the review music! (/Cranks it up.\)**

**x-knight20: Thanks for the comment. Yep, she has her hands full with Zane, but Marie isn't one to give up easily. She'll keep fighting till the very end.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Odd… You mean like I haven't answered them, or they just didn't show up period? Anyways, thanks for the comment. Glad you liked this last chapter.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Yep, she's dueling the best of the best already. I wouldn't count Zane out quite yet. Remember, he is a dangerous one with the Cyber Dragons, for he always has a way of keeping them in play. It's alright, no problem about not reviewing recently. Lol, I've been kind of off myself on reading and reviewing all the stories I have in stock also. One story, I'm like nearly 20 chapters behind on, which sucks, because I like the story also. Then there are others I'm 10 behind in, and so on. So much reading to do, but I want to write also. sighs Such a choice! Thanks for the comment on the fourth dorm idea. They never did say what the dorm used to be, so I guessed, why not make it the Anubis Dorm. Lol, yes, Crowler and Napoleon just "love" having Illidan and Marie as new headmasters. Marie's deck has gone through some changes, but mostly, at the core, it's still basically the same. All in good time things will be shown. Thanks again for the review!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thank you for that comment. I can't wait to post three chapters either. Yeah, I've seen the second season (all but like one episode where Jaden and Aster were in that tag team duel), and part of the third season is going on. I kind of spoiled it for myself also. Hehe, I get my cards mostly off of one site, and they have an episode guide, so I took a peak. This season sounds interesting, yet dark, which I'd like to see. It reminds me in a way of the Orichalcos season from Yugioh, which I thought was the better season of all of the show. Lol, but yes, I know the feeling about wanting to know what happens in this new season. Thanks again for the review.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Thanks, and yeah, it's a set of dueling chapters. Thank you for the comment on my writing. That's means a good bit, and helps me know I'm doing it right so far.**

**ardee: It's alright, no problem about not reviewing all the time. That happens. Thank you about the new duel. Most of Marie's deck is the same, but not quite. As you've seen, she had a few new cards in it so far. At the core, it's the same, but there are some changes. As for Illidan's Chaos Monsters, unfortunately, that is explained later. I wish I could say why he hasn't played them yet, but it would give away a lot of what will happen. Thanks again for your comments.**

**Alright, that's all the reviews for today. Btw, thank you to the people who have recently added my previous stories, as well as this one, to their favorites. I'm glad that my stories have been considered good enough to be added for it.**

**That's all I have for today, so I hope you all enjoy this new chapter. Later!**

**Chapter 10**

Picking up his next card, Zane lightly smirked and said "I summon Cyber Phoenix (1200/1600) to the field in attack mode." A silver machine like bird rose onto the field with a mechanical screech. It had four wings with red metallic feathers.

"My Cyber Phoenix's special ability now kicks in. While on the field, it can select one Machine type monster on the field. That monster can no longer be affected by spell or trap cards. Get where I'm going with this?"

Nodding, Marie irritably said "Yes, the Cyber Twin Dragon is immune to spell and trap cards."

Slightly smirking again, Zane replied "Correct. Cyber Phoenix, take out that Spirit of the Pot of Greed with Cyber Flames!" The machine bird rose up slightly from the field and spread it's wings to where all four were completely spread out. It quickly built up energy in it's wings, causing them to glow red. The energy transferred in a flash from the wings to it's mouth in a matter of moments. In an instant, the blast came flaming out of the bird's mouth and struck the green pot creature, instantly shattering it.

"Time to end this duel, so go Cyber Twin Dragon, attack with …"

Before Zane could finish, Marie called out "I'm not that easy to get rid of Zane! I reveal my spell card Flute of Summoning Kuriboh! Thanks to this spell card, I can special summon from my deck or hand one Winged Kuriboh or Kuriboh, so I'll choose from my deck and it'll be my Winged Kuriboh (300/200) in defense mode!" A small brown fur ball creature with green short stubby arms and legs with dull yellow nails, purple eyes, and small angel like wings then appeared onto the field with a small moan.

"That fur ball only delays the inevitable Marie. Cyber Twin Dragon, cook that hairball with Double Strident Blaze!" The twin headed dragon's heads released a stream of flames each straight for the smaller brown fur ball creature, which only looked bravely on at the oncoming attack.

Giggling innocently, Marie called out "You just fell for the oldest trick in the book Zane! I reveal my spell card Transcendent Wings! By ditching the two cards remaining in my hand and sacrificing my Winged Kuriboh, I can evolve it to Winged Kuriboh LV10 (300/200)!"

As she tossed the two cards remaining in her hand into the Graveyard slot, the brown fur ball on the field began glowing brightly. Immediately, the blinding light was replaced by a large set of white wings, which was attached to a small golden dragon like armor. The creature wearing the golden armor was none other than the small brown haired creature, now with eyes of fierceness. The large golden wings stretched out to form a shield, allowing them to knock the incoming flames away from it's body.

"Thanks to Winged Kuriboh's new form, I can sacrifice him during your Battle Phase and destroy all your monsters in attack mode, so say good bye to scrap heap one and two! Do your thing Kuriboh!"

With several loud happy toned moans, the small brown creature sent a blast of powerful white energy straight for the two machine monsters.

Quickly acting, Zane called out "Don't think it's time to celebrate just yet Marie, cause I activate the spell card De-Fusion! Now I can separate my dragon back into the two Cyber Dragons (2100/1600), and to keep them safe, I play them each in defense mode!"

With a small blinding light, the twin headed machine dragon split into two separate lights, each missing the oncoming blast, which took out the machine bird. As the light died down, two mechanical snake like dragons were left coiled up on the field.

Softly growling in frustration, Marie then smiled, saying "True, I may have only taken out one monster, but you were forced to give up a powerful one."

Nodding, Zane simply replied in a calm voice "But of course. Very impressive Marie. I must say, I didn't expect to lose my Cyber Twin Dragon like that, but you left me with little choice. This duel has been quite stimulating so far, and I'm looking forward to seeing what else you can do. For now though, I'll end my move." (Marie 10000, Zane 6500)

As Zane ended, Marie called out "Don't forget Zane, thanks to your earlier attack on my other monster, I get a new one in your End Phase, so I'll choose my Mokey Mokey (300/100) in defense mode." A blue rectangular monster with a small red question mark on the top of it's head and small yellow wings appeared on the field, saying in an odd voice "Mokey Mokey!"

With a fluent motion, she picked up her next card and slightly frowned at it. After a moment, she called out "I place one card face down and end my move." (Marie 10000, Zane 6500)

Easily drawing a card, Zane called out "That so, well that makes this turn more interesting, now doesn't it? I switch both my Cyber Dragons into attack mode and attack your Mokey Mokey with my first one! Strident Blaze now Cyber Dragon!"

One of the mechanical dragons opened it's mouth and released a stream of flames at the small blue creature, which had no where to run or hide. It was easily blown away by the attack, leaving Marie covering her face to shield herself from the heat.

"Don't forget Zane, thanks to your attack, I get another monster in your End Phase." Marie chimed in.

Shrugging, Zane replied "Doesn't matter to me, cause I can now direct attack! Cyber Dragon, hit her with Strident Blaze!"

The second mechanical dragon roared loudly and released a stream of fire at Marie, intending on hitting her head on.

Marie had other plans though, and clicked a button on her Duel Disk, calling out "I'm not about to take a hit, so I activate my trap card known as Miraculous Descent. Here is how it works: I can now return one removed from play Fairy type monster to the field in whatever mode I want. As long as this trap is on the field, the monster can stay, but if the trap or the monster is destroyed, both go to the Graveyard. So now, I special summon from my removed from play pile my Mystical Shine Ball (500/500) in defense mode!"

A small sphere of light appeared on the field with some mist circling it. It slightly glowed as it took up a defensive stance.

Lightly growling in irritation, Zane called out "No matter, cause my dragon will cook that thing!"

The flaming attack continued on, and with ease erased all memory of the sphere creature. Marie only smirked at this though, saying "Thanks Zane, cause now thanks to my trap card, I get yet another monster when you end your turn."

Looking at the card in his hand, Zane said "I'll place a face down and end at that." (Marie 10000, Zane 6500)

Not wanting to be left out, Marie chimed in with "Not quite Zane, cause now I get to special summon two new level two monsters. I pick another Mokey Mokey (300/100) and Watapon (200/300), both in defense mode." A small rectangular blue creature with yellow wings and a red question mark appeared on the field, along side with a pink round creature with small antenna and bright blue eyes.

Drawing her next card, Marie said "I place a monster in defense, and end my turn." (Marie 8000, Zane 6500)

Growing agitated with the duel, Zane drew and said "I play the spell card Different Dimension Capsule. Now I can select a card from my deck and remove it from play for two of my turns. After two turns, I get to add it back to my hand. Now, Cyber Dragons, attack Watapon and Mokey Mokey with Strident Blaze!

With a mighty roar each, the dragon's heads took aim. Simultaneously, the dragons released a blazing hot stream of red fire at the rectangular monster and the round creatures. Each were easily blown away by the shear might of the powerful dragons.

"That ends my turn. I do hope you intend on fighting back, cause this is really getting annoying." (Marie 10000, Zane 6500)

Smirking lightly, Marie said "I'm sure it is, but don't forget, thanks to my trap, I get two new monsters. I choose my second Mystical Shine Ball (500/500) and my last Mokey Mokey (300/100), both in defense mode."

A new sphere of shining light and a rectangular monster each took the field, seemingly doing whatever they could to protect their master.

Drawing with a smile, Marie called out "I Flip Summon my face down monster, so I reveal Skelengel (900/400)."

A creature with a red velvet crown, angel wings, white gloves, brown shoes, a blue belt, and a small golden bow appeared onto the field. The remainder of it's body was invisible, making it difficult to tell what the monster truly looked like in the face.

"Thanks to Flip Summoning my monster, I get to draw one additional card from my deck. Next I'll sacrifice both Skelengel and Mokey Mokey to summon my most feared monster, my Tyrant Dragon (2900/2500) in attack mode!"

Both the blue rectangular and invisible monsters vanished from the field, making room for the mighty dark orange dragon. It had massive wings, powerful clawed hands and feet, fin like ears on it's head, and a mighty tail. It let out a massive roar, somewhat striking fear into all on the field.

Smirking once more, Illidan silently said "_Good, she finally got it out. Now we'll see just how well Zane handles being on the run._"

Seeing Zane was somewhat curiously raising an eyebrow, Marie sweetly smiled, saying "This dragon is my favorite, and has won me many a duels. I know it will do the same right now, so let's do this! Go Tyrant Dragon, attack his Cyber Dragon with Tyrant Flame!"

A strong gust of wind blew over the field as the mighty orange dragon flapped it's wings, instantly gaining altitude. Once it was twenty feet over the field, it reared back it's head and shot a stream of red flame at one of the mechanical dragons, which was struck hard, and shattered instantly. The remainder of the flames struck Zane, making him put his arm up to shield himself.

"If you're finished now, I'll …" Zane began, only to be cut off.

"I didn't say I was through yet Zane. I activate my dragon's special ability. You see, if a monster is still on your field after one successful attack, then my dragon gets to attack again. Tyrant Dragon, melt that Cyber Dragon into scrap!"

Roaring loudly, the dragon, who was still in the air, let loose yet another blazing stream of flames at the remaining machine dragon. Zane only watched in somewhat shock as his other dragon was shattered and the remainder of the attack was striking him, causing him to hold his arm up again in defense.

Softly smirking at what she had done, Marie chastised Zane by saying "Both your dragons are gone, so that should cut you down to size."

Lowering his arm, Zane smirked, saying "Not really, cause you triggered my trap! I activate Return Soul, which now returns any monsters destroyed on my field back to my deck, so both Cyber Dragons go back to my deck now."

Both of the monster cards slowly slid out of the Graveyard slot, and Zane gently picked them up. He then pulled his deck out and shuffled both cards back in and placed his deck back into it's proper place once more.

"I think I've done enough damage now, so I'll end my turn then. Let's see what you can do against my dragon." (Marie 10000, Zane 4900)

Calmly drawing his next card, Zane said "First off, the card I removed from play activates."

A card back image suddenly formed on the field and slightly glowed. At the same time, a card in Zane's removed from play slot slid out.

"Wait, what's going on? You removed that card using your capsule, so you should have lost that card for a few turns." Marie asked with confusion in her voice.

Nodding, Zane replied "True, but the card I removed was a spell card known as Card from a Different Dimension. When this card is removed from play, it activates the following Standby Phase. It returns automatically to my hand, and we each get to draw two new cards."

Slightly growling at being fooled into destroying his capsule, Marie complied and drew her new cards. Looking at them, she saw she now had her Bountiful Artemis and Negate Attack. Zane at the same time drew his two as well.

Flipping over one of the cards he drew, Zane used his calm voice to say "Next, I'll play the spell card Future Fusion. This spell card allows me to search my deck and send monsters that form a Fusion monster to my Graveyard. In this case, I'll be sending my three Cyber Dragons to the Graveyard, and now I get to fuse them together to create my Cyber End Dragon (4000/2800)."

Each of the three machine dragons appeared on the field and let out a small mechanical roar. In a blinding light, the three vanished and were replaced by a large three headed machine dragon. This dragon had massive mechanical wings, and looked more like a three headed snake with wings. Each head roared loudly, showing the dragon's new strength.

"Of course, there is a catch to using my spell card. The turn this monster is formed, I can't attack."

After pausing for a moment, Zane then smirked, saying "But I have a way around that. I activate the spell card Quick Attack! Now my dragon can attack this turn, so say good bye to that dragon of yours. Cyber End Dragon, attack her Tyrant Dragon with Super Strident Blaze!"

Roaring loudly, each head opened their jaws. A glowing beam of light blue energy appeared in each set of jaws. In a tremendous blast, the three released their energy streams, which combined to form one large stream. The stream easily struck the large dark orange dragon, which roared in pain as Marie watched it explode in horror.

"I believe that shall do it for me." Zane said calmly with a small smirk playing upon his face. (Marie 8900, Zane 4900)

Seeing her next card was Heart of Clear Water, Marie lightly smiled. "I play the spell card Heart of Clear Water, and I equip it to my Mystical Shine Ball. Thanks to this spell card, my monster can't be destroyed due to battle, so now I have a permanent defense. Next, I summon Bountiful Artemis (1600/1700) in defense mode."

A white creature with a pointed end for bottom part of it's body, that curved outwards like a vase, that came up to a set of shoulders covered with a purple flowing cape and long mechanical looking three fingered hands appeared. On it's back were two large mechanical wings that were hollow. Lastly, it's head was white and looked more like a robots head than anything. The creature then put it's arms in a defensive blocking stance.

"Finally, I'll place one card face down. That's all for now." (Marie 8900, Zane 4400)

Drawing his next card, Zane calmly said "Your monster maybe in defense, but I can still do Battle Damage thanks to my dragon. You see, when I attack with it, the difference in my monster's attack points and your monster's defense points get dealt directly to your life points."

"Trample…" Marie said in somewhat shock.

"That's right. I move to attack with Cyber End Dragon, so blast that Mystical Shine Ball with Super Strident Blaze!"

A mighty mechanical roar filled the air as the tri-headed dragon released a stream of powerful energy straight at the sphere creature.

Seeing the danger coming, Marie called out "You may think you've hit upon a real strategy, but you haven't! I activate my trap card Negate Attack! Thanks to this, I get to end your Battle Phase and your attack is negated. Also, thanks to this trap being a counter trap, my Artemis's effect kicks in. Each time a counter trap is played, I get to draw a card."

Smirking, Zane replied "Not quite yet, for I activate the spell card Trap Booster! You might remember it from earlier. Now I get to send a card from my hand to the Graveyard, so I send my Card from a Different Dimension. Thanks to that, I get to activate a trap from my hand, which happens to be my Trap Jammer! This trap negates the activation of another trap, so nice try!"

"No!" was all Marie could say as her trap card was shattered.

The attack continued on, and finally reached the small sphere monster, which was surrounded by the blast of energy. The remainder of the blast then struck Marie hard, pushing her backwards several feet and causing a great bit of smoke to appear.

As the smoke vanished, Marie was seen standing hunched over, panting hard. Slowly, she stood straight and walked forward to where she had been standing.

After a few more moments, when she had caught her breath, she said "Since my trap was negated, it's gone, but your Trap Jammer is a counter trap, which means I still get to draw one card from my deck."

Picking up another card, Marie saw it was one Illidan had given her during one Christmas while hiding away the Shadow Charms. They had been in Egypt at the time, mostly just there to pick up another charm from Shadi. While there, they had decided to stay for the weekend, seeing how it was Christmas.

Marie still remembered Illidan handing her a box, which Marie knew what was in it. He always got her a card for Christmas. In fact, almost every event in their life, he got her something, like a pack of cards or a really rare card or two.

What she didn't expect to find though was this card. She looked at it, and looked back at Illidan with curiosity.

He had seen her curious eyes, and said "It's called Mudora. It's a pretty strong Fairy type monster. You know that sometimes you burn up a lot of monsters defending yourself, and eventually your Graveyard is just full of Fairy monsters. Well, this card turns that into an advantage. With this card, you gain 200 points a Fairy type monster in the Graveyard. Pretty cool, don't you think?"

Marie eventually came to love this card, for it saved her several times. She had a feeling that it would help her now more than ever as well.

Looking back up, she saw Zane say "I end my turn, so go ahead Marie." (Marie 5400, Zane 4900)

Drawing a new card, Marie softly smiled and said "I play the spell card Terroforming! This card allows me to search my deck for a field spell card."

Pulling her deck out of it's slot, she slowly began to search through the remaining cards. She quickly realized as she was searching that her deck was getting very thin. "_I've been playing so many monster, spell, and trap cards that I had no idea I was burning my deck up this fast. I have to end this fast, or I'll lose. My best guess is that I have only fifteen cards left. That's enough though, I hope._"

Finally finding the right card, she pulled it out and shuffled the remainder of her deck. She then said "Now, for a change of scenery. I play the field spell Sanctuary of the Sky!"

A slot on the end of the Duel Disk popped open and she stuck the card onto the open slot. It then pulled back in and the Duel Disk slightly glowed. Quickly, the scenery of the duel changed. A blue sky with large white fluffy clouds appeared and a large stone building appeared behind Marie.

"As long as this card is on the field, when a Fairy type monster loses a battle, I receive zero Battle Damage. That takes care of the small problem with your monster."

Looking at her Graveyard, Marie began to count off the Fairy monsters in it in her head. After a moment, she came to the conclusion that only twelve monsters in her Graveyard were Fairy type, which meant her monster couldn't win a fight with Zane's monster, yet.

"That's it for me." (Marie 5400, Zane 4900)


	11. Chapter 11: Proof of Strength, Pt 3

**Hello once again everyone! Well, this past weekend was an interesting one. To start things off, Saturday morning, I grudgingly went and got my hair cut. It was somewhat long, not too long, but longer than I had ever let it grow before. My bangs were in my eyes all the time, and I was kind of too lazy to trim them, lol. My mate loved my hair, but everyone else in my family hated the look, and kept badgering me to cut it. I finally gave in and got it cut. It's shorter, but not too short. I still prefer it longer…**

**At any rate, I ended up cutting my mate's mom's yard for her later that morning before it got too hot, which wasn't too hard. I went home and spent a little time with my mate, then went to my dad's. I was less than a quarter of a mile away when some kind of large golden colored cat darted out in front of me. Needless to say, I couldn't get stopped, and hit the thing head on. It mostly straddled my car, except for apparently it's head, which hit off my front license plate and then off of my radiator. I looked back to see it lying in the road, unsure of what it was. Well, I went down to my dad's house and pulled in and got out to look at the damage. My front plate had a very nice dent at the bottom of it, plus I could smell something. Getting down to look, I discovered my radiator was busted open, with antifreeze leaking out. My dad was luckily home, and after talking it over, decided to move my car out of the way and to call it in Monday, since there was nothing we could really do over the weekend. We went back up to the accident site to see if we could find what I hit, only to discover no blood, no animal, no nothing. Well, dad questioned me about what I saw, and I described it best I could: a big golden looking cat, lol. Our best guess was it was a mountain lion, which is very rare in West Virginia. The point of the story is, yesterday, I found out through my grandma that she talked to a friend of hers that picked up the creature. It turned out to be a bobcat that weighed 45 lbs! Bobcats are normally much smaller than that, so it was a shock to find out how heavy the thing was. Needless to say, a 45 lb bobcat is more than enough to damage a car, lol. But that was my interesting weekend.**

**Thank you to all of the people who have been reviewing! I appreciate it very much. Also, I wish to thank all of the people who have been reading my previous stories recently and adding them to their favorites. It means a lot to know my older stories, along with my newer, are getting looked at.**

**Last time, Marie and Zane's duel continued to heat up, with Marie summoning her Tyrant Dragon. It lasted a while, only to be destroyed. The question is, has Zane finally backed Marie into a corner, and what of her Mudora card? Can it win the duel for her? Those questions and more to be answered in this chapter!**

**But for now, it's my favorite part of the morning! (//Cranks up review music.\\) It's review time!**

**x-knight20: Thanks for the comment. Yes, Mudora. Eh, I could probably slap something together for a Fairy deck, if I wanted to. I've mostly let rl Marie have part of my Fairy cards, seeing how I don't use them. True, she's going up against one of the strongest monsters.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Lol, good possibility that she is going to kick Zane's butt. That's cool that things have finally slowed down. I wish they would in my life, but with going to the beach, my car, and everything, it's kind of impossible, lol.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Yep, Marie's deck has slightly changed as I said, but at the core, it's mostly the same. Eh, I didn't mind the slowness of the Orichalcos season, due that it was rather good. Even though it was a darker season, I think that's what made it interesting. It showed the almighty Yami could be tempted into darkness even. The site where I get most of my info on cards is this: ****http://www.janime.info****. It has all the seasons of GX so far, plus when I need to do some old Yugioh season looking, I go to There, they have all the seasons for Yugioh listed out and have part of the cards Yugi used. But that's where I get most of my stuff. Yeah, I had no idea that the Jaden/Aster tag duel was on till the next week, when I saw the 2****nd**** episode of it. Too bad it hasn't aired here. Thanks again for the comments.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Hmm, odd. Usually if I see any kind of reviews, I post them, although I'm not always right. I may have missed a review. Sorry if I did.**

**ardee: Yep, it is, lol. Thanks for that comment about ToP days, lol. Actually, my mate brought that fact up to me. She commented on my writing, saying all ToP was was one great big duel. My second story, TWS, turned more plot like, along with a bit of dueling. According to her, this last story, it has more plot than before, and less dueling, so I don't know, lol. Yes, I had to use the anime effect for a few cards like Future Fusion. Lol, I wish it was true too. We'll see about how funny the match up is soon, hehe.**

**Well, that's it for me. Thank you everyone for your reviews so far. I enjoy each and every one of them. I encourage people to comment, review, question, etc, anything you like about my story. I enjoy hearing comments, the good and the bad.**

**It's time once again for me to get to work, but for now, enjoy this chapter. Later!**

**Chapter 11**

Drawing his card, Zane said "Cyber End Dragon, attack her Bountiful Artemis with Super Strident Blaze!"

In a flash, the three dragon heads had energy formed within their jaws. Simultaneously, the three released their blasts into one large stream of pure energy, which easily shattered the odd looking fairy.

"That's all for now." (Marie 5400, Zane 4900)

As Marie drew, she softly smirked, saying "Thanks for that last attack Zane. With it, you helped me achieve my goal."

Raising an eyebrow, Zane asked "What do you mean?"

Lightly giggling, Marie simply replied "You see, the monster I wanted to summon needed one more Fairy type monster in the Graveyard in order to truly be successful, and since you just helped me, I can now take that dragon of yours down."

Softly chuckling, Zane calmly replied "I'd have to see that to believe it."

Smiling back, Marie simply said "Glad you said that, cause here it is! I summon Mudora (1500/1800) in attack mode!"

A man wearing an ancient Egyptian golden mask that covered his whole head to his chest, which was then covered by grey armor that left his arms and legs bare then appeared. In the man's left hand was a large sword, seemingly very sharp. The man's arms were very muscular, and his skin tone was tan.

"Now for the best part! Mudora's effect is a very special one. You see, he gains 200 attack points per a Fairy type monster in my Graveyard. Right now, there are currently thirteen in my grave, meaning he gains 2600 attack points (1500 + 2600 4100/1800)!"

The ancient man on the field began to slightly glow golden as Marie's Graveyard slot glowed the same color. In an instant, the man was given great power and was poised to attack.

Zane softly gasped, shocked at the turn of events.

"_Way to go Marie. I knew you'd turn things around._" Illidan silently said with a smile on his face.

"Mudora, carve that tin can up with Ancient Fairy Slash!" The ancient man rushed forward, not slowing one bit. In a single flash, he jumped onto the three headed machine dragon and slashed each of the heads of the dragon, causing it to let out a loud roar as the body and heads completely exploded.

"I think that'll be it for me. You're up Zane." (Marie 5400, Zane 4800)

Softly growling at his loss, Zane picked up a card and said "I play the spell card Monster Reincarnation. This card allows me to send one card from my hand to the Graveyard and then I get to transfer a monster back to my hand, so I'll send my Photon Generator Unit to the Graveyard and return one Cyber Dragon. Next, I'll special summon it to the field in defense mode (2100/1600)."

The one headed mechanical snake like dragon reappeared onto the field and curled up into a tight coil.

"Unfortunately, that is all I can do for now." (Marie 5400, Zane 4800)

As she drew, Marie called out "Surely you can do better. I'll start by sacrificing my Mystical Shine Ball for Airknight Parshath (1900/1400) in attack mode."

The small sphere of light vanished from the field and was replaced with a half angel, half horse creature. The angel half wore blue and gold armor, and had wings draping across it's body in different places. In his right hand was a sword, while his left held a shield. The horse half was white, and had wings on it's back.

"Don't forget Zane, since I just added another Fairy to my Graveyard, Mudora gets stronger (4100 + 200 4300/1800). Airknight, attack his Cyber Dragon with Fairy Slash!"

Rearing into the air, the angel quickly charged forward sword raised. In a simple motion, the dragon was slashed into half, causing a shower of sparks to fly from it's corpse as it exploded. The sparks flew straight at Zane, causing him to cover his body slightly from them.

"Oh yeah, I forgot to mention, my Airknight has trample as well, so you lose 300 additional life points. Plus, when he does Battle Damage, I get to draw one new card. Mudora, you're on! Attack directly with Ancient Fairy Slash!"

With lightning quick speed, the ancient man ran across the field. His speed was so great that Zane lost track of him, only to find him reappear while making a downward slash. The slash threw Zane to the ground, causing him to pant hard from the impact.

"I'll place a card face down and call it a turn. You're up Zane. Better make it count, cause there won't be a next turn." (Marie 5400, Zane 200)

Panting hard as he stood back up, Zane struggled for a moment to draw his card. Finally, he drew it and smirked, saying "I'm not through yet, for now I play the spell card Turnabout Treasure. I can only play this card when I have nothing on my field and hold no cards in my hand. Thanks to this card, I get to draw one card for each face up card on your field, and my last count, you have four. That means four new cards for me."

Struggling less with each card, Zane glanced over his new hand and smirked confidently, saying "It's time to finish this duel. I play the spell card Power Bond. As you remember, this spell card allows me to fuse together monsters to form a Machine type monster. The monster I'll be creating will be my Cyber End Dragon."

Puzzled, Marie asked "How do you plan on doing that when you don't even have any of the three Cyber Dragons you need to create it?"

Smirking once more, Zane replied "Simple. I plan on playing this spell card also, known as Cybernetic Fusion Support! By paying half of my life points, I can now remove from play from my Graveyard the Fusion Material monsters needed to summon my dragon. So, say farewell to three Cyber Dragons and hello to my Cyber End Dragon (4000/2800)!"

Slowly, the three Cyber Dragon cards slid out of Zane's Graveyard slot. Zane grabbed up the cards and placed them within the removed from play slot, and then slapped his dragon card onto his Duel Disk. The large three headed machine dragon quickly appeared onto the field, letting out a massive roar.

"Don't forget, thanks to Power Bond, it's attack points are doubled (4000 2 8000/2800)!" The dragon was suddenly struck by lightning, causing it to roar loudly as it's strength doubled.

Lightly chuckling in her head, Marie mentally said "_Zane may have pulled out a good move, but it's pointless. As long as my field spell is in effect, I'll lose zero points when he attacks one of my monsters. Plus, during his End Phase, his Power Bond's effect will take the remainder of his life points. Even if he gets past them, I have a card ready and waiting on him._"

Seeing what was happening, Illidan lightly frowned. "_Zane knows he can't beat Marie with that dragon right now, so why bother? I don't like this. It's like he's setting her up._"

Continuing his move, Zane said "And for the cherry on top, I play the spell card Limiter Removal! This spell card now doubles my Machine monsters attack points (8000 2 16000/2800)!" The dragon roared loudly once more as it's body glowed with a powerful white light, signifying it's rise in power.

Watching this, Illidan silently realized something was definitely wrong with the current picture, and knew for sure Marie was in trouble. "_There is no way he'd play that spell card if he didn't think he could win. First off, he played Power Bond, which means he'll lose 4000 points in his End Phase. Second off, Marie's field spell card keeps him from doing damage._"

Seeing he had one more card in his hand, Illidan quickly figured out what it could possibly be. "_It's got to be some kind of spell/trap removal! He wouldn't dare go this far without having something to get rid of her field spell._"

Back on the field, Marie prepared for Zane's attack. "_If he attacks, my field spell will resolve the Battle Damage. If he destroys my field spell, I'll just spring my trap on him. Either way, this duel is going to end this turn._"

"It's time I finish this duel, and the way I'll finish it is with my last card. I play the spell card Heavy Storm! Now your entire set of spell and trap cards destroyed!"

Marie could only watch in horror as typhoons lashed out across the field, each picking a target. The first struck her trap card, then her face down card, revealing that it was Spirit Barrier. Finally, the last typhoon struck the building standing behind her, which shattered, returning the background of the field to the dark night.

It then struck her that the duel was over. With her Fairy monsters out, even in attack mode, and no field spell to back them up or her trap card, she was defenseless against Zane's dragon. Seeing this, she heavily sighed and lowered her head, knowing she had lost. She then raised her head though, deciding to go out with her pride at the least.

Nodding lightly, Zane called out "Cyber End Dragon, attack Mudora with Super Strident Blaze to finish this duel!"

The large three headed machine dragon let out a primeval mechanical roar from each head. Each opened their jaws showing a bright glow of white energy in each mouth. In an instant, the three headed dragon released a stream of white energy from each mouth, which then merged into one large stream. With incredible force, the blast struck the ancient fairy, incinerating it within seconds of the blast touching it. The remainder of the blast continued on straight for Marie, easily engulfing her in the blinding light, which followed by a large explosion.

As the smoked cleared, Marie was visibly seen on her knees as the remainder of her life points drained to zero. Upon hitting zero, her Duel Disk powered down, and the remaining monsters on the field vanished as well. Zane's own Duel Disk powered down as well, as he simply stood looking over at Marie.

Illidan casually walked down to Marie and stooped down. Seeing she was panting hard, he gave her a moment to catch her breath.

Once she finally caught it, she looked up at him and smiled. Smiling back, Illidan kindly said "Good try Marie. You almost had him."

He then offered her his hand, which she gladly took. The two stood back up as Zane slowly walked over to the two.

Extending his hand, Zane smiled, saying "That was a good duel Marie."

Smiling back, Marie gladly accepted and replied "It was a great duel Zane. You're pretty incredible at dueling."

Lightly chuckling, Zane commented back "As are you. I can see now that the Slifer Dorm is indeed in capable hands."

Both smiled at the comment, and Illidan replied "Thank you Zane. That means a lot coming from you."

Checking his watch, Illidan sighed and said "Well, it's late, so we'd all better get some rest. No need to be exhausted when the students get here tomorrow."

Nodding back, Zane replied "True. I think I'm going to stay out here a little longer. I'll see you two in the morning, probably around eleven. The students shouldn't get here till afternoon."

Illidan simply nodded and said "Alright Marie, let's head back."

She smiled at him, but was completely shocked as he scooped her up in his arms in bridal style. It was so shocking, she let out a small eep. Without another word, Illidan walked off, carrying Marie in his arms.

As Zane turned to look back out at the sea, he smiled softly, saying "This year should be truly interesting."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Lying in bed, Illidan slowly awoke to the sun filtering through the window. He felt Marie snuggle up closer to him at that moment, knowing she was still in deep sleep.

Looking over at her sleeping form, he smiled softly as he idly ran a finger though her soft brown hair. Sighing in content, he pulled her closer and closed his eyes, preparing to fall back asleep.

Before doing so though, his logical mind decided to check the time. He quickly glanced over at the clock and saw it read nine-thirty-six.

Groaning, Illidan knew he had to get up soon, for the alarm was set for ten. Carefully, he slid away from Marie and out of the bed. He wanted to badly return to bed though as Marie seemed to be looking hard for his body so she could snuggle back up against it. Instead, she managed to wrap herself deeper into the covers, making him slightly sigh.

Staying his course though, Illidan quickly grabbed some clothes and a turned off the alarm clock so not to wake up Marie. Slowly, he made his way into the bathroom and closed the door behind him. Finding a towel and washcloth, Illidan threw them in front of the shower and proceeded to get ready for the day.

While under the steamy water, he simply stood there pondering what all would happen through the year. "_Will this be easy? Doubtful… Nothing is easy in life, but then again, I wouldn't have it any other way either. I just hope this job isn't impossible to do._"

After about ten more minutes, Illidan finally stepped out and dried off. Slowly, after completely drying his hair, Illidan put on his black slacks and black undershirt that the school, or more or less Seto, had provided him. His official school coat would be last to put on, but he didn't want to wear it till he was ready to go.

Finally satisfied that he was ready, he opened the bathroom door to see what looked like a brown eyed angel lying on her side in a sexy black and silver silk chemise and thong, and was looking straight at him with a seductive smile. She had her head propped up with one arm and the other arm and hand on her hip.

Feeling the temperature rise about a hundred degrees, all thoughts left Illidan's mind as he just simply stared at the beauty. He could almost feel his tongue falling out of his mouth.

"Are you going to just stare or come and get me?" Marie purred as she lay completely still.

Without hesitation, Illidan simply replied as he started ripping his shirt off "To hell with being on time for the first day."


	12. Chapter 12: Arrival

**Hey everyone! (//Smiles\\) Well, this week has seemingly turned around since the weekend. Last night (Wednesday), I got my car back, and it's running perfectly. Apparently, the bobcat hit and run did about 800 bucks worth of damage. At least the insurance picked up part of the tab, other than my deductible, which was cool. Other than that, not much else has happened, lol, other than the jokes going on around work about me being called a bobcat slayer now. That and now my new name is "Bobcat Johnson." Silly people, lol.**

**Hopefully, and I stress this heavily, I will be able to post next week while on vacation. If not, I apologize in advance. I was told by my step mom, whom booked the room and all, that there is internet access, so as I said, I should be able to post. Again, I apologize in advance if it doesn't happen.**

**Last time around, Marie lost to Zane in a climatic ending of their duel, but the couple gained Zane's respect at the least. A new day has arrived, with Illidan already getting distracted, hehe. What will this day of meeting the students bring, and the bigger question is, can Illidan and Marie survive them?**

**Alright, it's now time for the best part of the morning! Review time!**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Heh, yes, he has good priorities. True, Crowler already doesn't like Illidan, but one has to wonder why, lol. Lol, you never know, the two may have at it eventually. Thanks about the Marie and Zane match. I made it as intense as possible, and had it look like it could go either way. True, Zane's strategy is simple, but effective. You never know, Aster or the Light of Ruin could show up… or I could have went around them seeing how I didn't know about it when I began this story, lol. Thank you for the comments once again.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Yeah, she lost the duel, but it's alright. Cool that that's the same site. I get a lot of my research material from there and the other site I mentioned.**

**x-knight20: Thanks for your comments. Yeah, Marie did pretty good against Zane, but it was a close duel.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Lol, yes, that's the same thought I had when I saw it on T.V. for the first time (end of season 1 for GX). Thank you, and yeah, poor Marie didn't win, but she was close at least. Hehe, yes, cute ending sentences. I'll try and remember about the not everyone is married comment.**

**ardee: I think the fact Zane won threw everyone off. I was sort of saying Marie would throughout the three chapters, only to setup an upset win for Zane, lol. Very true, the main villain seems to always take the lead early with the hero nearly losing before making a miraculous comeback. Yes, there was a suggestive ending, hehe. That ending and a few other parts of this story sort of made me reevaluate what to rate the story, and I think T is the best rating for it. True, Illidan hasn't lost a duel within my stories, but as I've indicated previously, when him and Marie are alone, he has lost duels. I know, that's like saying it happened, but I didn't say it or show it. But you never know with this story. Illidan could lose, or he could go straight to the top again! Lol, you'll just have to wait and find out. I can understand the thing about not liking GX. My mate wasn't too fond of it herself early on, but I've grown to like it. The first season was really slow to start with, but when it got down to the Shadow Riders, I really started enjoying it more. Thank you for you comments.**

**Alright, that's it for this session. Thank you to all that read this story and to those who review it. I love knowing how people react to my chapters, which helps me a lot in writing up newer chapters. Thank you all again, and I hope to see lots of reviews soon. I hope you all enjoy this new chapter. In it, it'll reveal a little something for the future. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 12**

Zane was patiently staring off towards the horizon as he mentally chided Illidan and Marie for being late. "_Where are they?! They know the students will be here this afternoon, and it's already twelve-thirty!_"

Taking a calming breath, Zane quickly replaced his anger with calmness and only focused on the sea. The sea always seemed to calm him, no matter what happened in life.

A few moments later, he heard a set of footsteps approaching him. Turning to look over his shoulder, he saw that it was Illidan and Marie finally arriving.

"About time the two of you got here. The students will be arriving in the next hour or so." Zane casually said with his back to the two and irritation definitely hidden within his voice.

Both sheepishly rubbed the back of their necks, and uttered "We're sorry."

Sighing, Zane turned to face the two to find both dressed in their school uniforms that had been issued. Illidan wore a black set of khaki pants, along with a black undershirt and finally his large red and white jacket that matched Zane's. Marie meanwhile wore a solid red skirt that went to her mid thigh, and had on a white and red mixture uniform top.

"Why do the girls get skirts anyways?" Marie asked with a furrowed brow.

Zane simply shrugged as Illidan blurted out "They look better on them than guys."

As always, Marie smacked him in the back of the head with a strong right hand, making him clutch his head. "Ouch! Why did you do that?"

The only response Illidan got was a soft growl and a glare, one that said "It goes without saying."

Zane slightly sweat dropped at the entire situation and finally said "Anyways, I guess now we can get ready for the students since we're all here now."

The other simply nodded and walked into the Slifer Dorm. Once in, they checked over the paperwork that listed each student and had each of their information, along with which room they were assigned to.

About thirty minutes later, Illidan stood up and stretched from reading his papers and announced "Tomorrow, I want to interview each student individually, so they can get to know me. You should do the same Marie with the girls."

Glancing up, Marie just nodded and returned to her reading. Looking over at Zane, Illidan simply said "Zane, you can do the same if you feel like it."

Thinking momentarily, Zane replied "No thanks. All the students that are returning already know me, and the few that don't will hear of me through all the rumors and gossip. I think I won't worry about it for now."

Shrugging, Illidan turned his eyes out the window to see a ship approaching the island. "Well, well, looks like it's time for the students to arrive at long last."

Both Marie and Zane put down their paperwork to see Illidan was correct. A large white ship, which seemed far off, was slowly coming closer and closer to the island.

Uncrossing her legs and standing up, and then smoothing out her skirt, Marie stretched her arms and yawned, saying "I guess we should gather up our paperwork then and get ready for them. They'll be here soon."

Zane finally stood up and nodded and simply grabbed up his paperwork. Marie and Illidan did the same and trio headed out of the dorm. After a five minute walk, they three were down at the dock waiting for the ship to pull in.

Thirty minutes later, with the help of some a few tug boats, the ship docked and the ramps were placed up to the ship. By this time, the Chancellor and all of the other headmasters arrived at the docks. Each was dressed up in their school uniforms, hoping to greet the students warmly.

A few minutes after the ramps were made secure, the wave of students started pouring off of it. There were students wearing red coats, some with yellow coats, and some with blue coats. All seemed to be happily chatting to someone about the trip and what they expected to do, or something or another.

One student caught Illidan's eye specifically. This student wore a red jacket, which ranked him as a Slifer. He had brown hair that was flared out to the left of his head for some reason, and his bangs were a little long. His light brown eyes seemed to be filled with great happiness. The thing that really caught Illidan's eye was the golden pendant around his neck. It was a circle like pendant with a red eye in the middle and had some kind of odd cut out shapes within the circle.

"_A Shadow Charm!?_" Illidan silently asked himself.

A small blur soon appeared beside the person Illidan was staring at. It was faint at first, but Illidan could definitely tell it was something real. Immediately, he noticed it looked like a brown fur ball with purple eyes, small white wings on it's back, and small green arms and legs. Each of it's fingers and toes were yellow claws.

"_Interesting… He has a Duel Spirit, and if I'm not mistaken, he has Winged Kuriboh as his Duel Spirit._"

Glancing over at Marie, he saw she was staring at the same student. Smiling inwardly, Illidan realized this was the student the Chancellor had spoken of. This student was the one who had saved the school, and literally saved the world from the Sacred Beasts. This student had done the impossible, and yet was so very carefree.

Looking back up at the student, he saw he was talking with a shorter boy with light teal colored hair, which was semi long, but was puffed out a little. He wore glasses and had green eyes, and was also wearing a red coat.

To the other side of the brown eyed student was another whom had black hair, wore a black coat, and had dark brown eyes. The thing that really stuck out to Illidan about this student was the three Duel Spirits surrounding him. Each seemed to be wearing what looked like pink bikini briefs. There was a yellow spirit, along with a green one, and a black one.

Thinking hard for a few moments, Illidan finally identified the three spirits as Ojama Yellow, Green, and Black. Looking back up, he could tell the spirits were highly annoying the student, who seemed to be whispering to them to leave him be. Illidan only lightly chuckled at the annoyed face of the student whom seemed distance himself from all the others.

Many other students continued to pour off of the ship, with each of the headmasters and the student teachers welcoming the students. After the ship was emptied out, the students were separated out and sent to their individual dorms.

Illidan, along with Marie at his side and Zane in behind, led the group back to the Slifer Dorm. Once out front, Illidan spoke up, saying "Alright, students, first of all, we're going to now issue out your rooms. When we call your name, come forward and we'll tell you which room you're in. Once you find out, you can head on to your room. Also, at six tonight, we will have a dinner in the cafeteria, so please, all of you come to it due that there will be announcements made then."

Slowly, one by one, the students' names were called out and each left to go to their rooms. After an agonizing hour, all of the students were gone and up to their rooms. Illidan, Marie, and Zane each let out a sigh of relief as they headed back to the dorm lounge.

"Well, that's over at last." Marie said as she sat down.

Sitting down as well, Zane grumbled "I never knew that teachers had this much work to do before. I wish now I had headed for the Pro League, then I'd have zero paperwork and one-hundred percent dueling."

Lightly chuckling at Zane, Illidan only replied "Ah, it wasn't that bad. Besides, we can't rest long. We have to go give the order to the cooks, unless we're going to cook."

"Uh, Illidan, I hate to tell you, but there are no cooks here at Slifer…" Zane said with great hesitation in his voice.

Illidan and Marie both stared at Zane wide eyed, saying "WHAT!?"

"Wait, what do you mean no cooks!? How can a dorm not have cooks?!" Marie asked in complete shock.

Sighing slightly, Zane replied "Well, you see, only Obelisk Blue has official cooks. Ra Yellow's Headmaster is the cook for the Ra Dorm, and well, Professor Banner was the cook here before you came along."

Turning to Illidan wide eyed still, Marie asked "What are we going to do!? We have sixty or so students to feed, and no cooks!"

Facing the door now, Illidan replied "We'll just have to make do. The three of us will have to just whip something up right quick. I can't be too hard. I can fix them some stir fry, Marie, you can make some rice, and Zane, fix something for dessert."

"You're kidding, right?!" Zane asked in complete shock.

Looking back over his shoulder, Illidan simply said "Do I look like I'm kidding? We have only a few hours before dinner, so we have no time to lose."

Illidan walked out of the room, leaving both Marie and Zane grumbling. The two quickly followed behind Illidan to the kitchen and began making dinner.

Within two hours, Illidan had fried up enough chicken and vegetables to feed the students. He smiled at his masterful work and placed it on plates.

Marie had managed to make rice and tried to stir fry it with some more vegetables, but only managed to burn the rice along with her vegetables. As she scrapped the rice and vegetables out, she gave a strong glare at Illidan, whom was lightly chuckling at the mishap.

Zane in the meantime had managed to make a series of vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry cakes, each with different kinds of frosting. In all, he had managed to create six cakes.

Wiping away the sweat, the three checked the time to see it was only thirty minutes before dinner. Quickly placing the food into a warming oven, the three left and quickly cleaned up, hoping to get freshened up before dinner.

At six, the three returned to find the students just coming in. Together, the three dispensed the plates of food, which was just enough for all the students.

As they began, each could hear complaints, numerous ones at that, about the rice being burnt. Illidan could only stifle a chuckle as he watched Marie grew angrier and angrier with each.

At long last, about five minutes into the meal, the student with a black coat stood and cried out "This slop sucks!"

Anime flames seemed to encircle Marie as she stood with fire flashing in her eyes and fists clenched. In a furious voice, one which no one in their right mind would challenge, she yelled "SHUT UP AND EAT IT, BEFORE I CRAM IT DOWN YOUR THROAT YOU IMMGRATE!"

The student was quite shocked and immediately sat back down, instantly shoveling in the burnt rice on order. Marie slowly sat down and glared at Illidan and Zane, whom were both trying desperately to not laugh. The glare instantly made both regain their composure as they just simply ate their own meal.

Finally, dinner ended, the dishes were collected, and the students waited to find out what the announcements were. Seeing they were waiting, and most likely wanting to head back to their rooms, Illidan quickly moved to the front of the cafeteria and gave a sharp whistle to get everyone's attention.

Once he saw he had their full attention, Illidan smiled and said "Welcome students to a new semester. I'm sure everyone is excited for it to start."

In the back, he heard one student say "You bet I am."

Smiling slightly more, Illidan motioned for Zane and Marie to join him. Once they stood at both his sides, Illidan continued on, saying "To start with, I'd like to introduce myself and the rest of the staff. I am Illidan Stormrage, the new headmaster here at the Slifer Dorm. Beside me is my wife, Marie Stormrage, headmaster of the girls' dorm here as well. And many of you I'm sure know him, but this is Zane Truesdale, whom graduated last year from this school, but has come back to be our student teacher."

Seeing everyone seemingly nod, Illidan continued on with "Since this is a new semester, myself and Marie will be having interviews with all of you. There will be a list posted tomorrow stating what the times are for the interviews. They are all tomorrow, so check the list around noon in the lounge. We want to get to know all of you, and make each of you feel welcome here."

"Tomorrow night, there will be a movie, one which me, Marie, and Zane will pick. We'll try hard to pick a good one for you all. Finally, if there are any questions or you wish to talk, everyone is more than welcome to speak to any of the three of us. We're always available to talk."

Formally bowing, Illidan ended with "Thank you all for your patience. That is all for tonight."

The entire group of students all stood up and slowly left the room. At long last, the room was empty, leaving the three staff members sighing.

"That went well, other than the complaining about the cooking, as usual." Illidan finally managed to say with a smirk.

Marie gave him a death glare instantly and went to choke him, but Illidan knew what was coming, and instantly ran for safety.

"GET BACK HERE ILLIDAN SO I CAN KILL YOU!" Marie screamed as she chased him around the tables.

Zane only simply sighed, mentally saying "_And they're supposed to be the headmasters…_"

Finally after twenty minutes of giving chase, Marie gave up and grumbled "I can't help it the rice burnt…"

Smiling softly, Illidan came up behind her and gathered her up into his arms, embracing her softly. Resting his head in the crook of her neck, he crooned "It's alright my love. You're still learning, like all of us. Just have patience."

With a bit of sarcasm, he slowly added "With this wonderful group, you'll get lots of practice at it."

Marie only sighed and then softly chuckled, replying with "You're right. I hope they have plenty of antacids though, or stuff to cover the burnt taste up with."

At this time, Zane cleared his throat, making the two realize immediately that he was still there. Illidan released Marie from his embrace and said "Sorry about that. Anyways, let's get this place cleaned up. We have a long day tomorrow, and need some rest for it."

Together, the group a load of dishes to the kitchen and began washing, rinsing, and drying the dishes. Once finished, the three wiped down the tables and swept and mopped the floor. After two hours, the group finally finished and breathed a sigh of relief.

Finally finished, the couple left for their house behind the dorm while Zane headed down to the lighthouse to stare out as usual before bed.

Marie flung herself right onto the bed and let out a muffled groan. "I wish Seto had warned us about the cooking part. Then I should have said screw this and just come as your wife." she mumbled as she turned over.

Shaking his head at his wife, Illidan smartly said "You know that'd never have satisfied you. I think you made a smart decision to work for Kaiba. Besides, you'd be bored out of your mind within an hour of being here without something to do."

She only sighed once more as Illidan slowly snuck onto the bed. Marie had her back to him, so he easily landed on top of her, instantly pinning her. She quickly realized it as she tried to move, but Illidan held her down, letting off a small growl in her ear. A small tingle ran up and down her spine as she realized what Illidan wanted, which was what she wanted ultimately as well.

Little did the two know that a person on the island was watching the small house from a distance.

In the silence of the night, the figure whispered "I've finally found you two. Now the real fun shall begin."


	13. Chapter 13: Interviews

**Hello everybody! I'm sorry about not posting this past week. There was good news and bad news on my internet deal at the beach. The good news was, I had it. The bad news was, when I tried to upload a document to I couldn't. Arg, that was so infuriating! But to make up for it, I will post five chapters this week, one for each weekday!**

**This past week was pretty awesome btw. Last Saturday, me, my mate, and part of my family (aunt, uncle, nephew, and step brother) headed out and drove down to Myrtle Beach, SC! We made it finally that evening and went and did our grocery shopping. My dad and step mom came down later that night. Anyways, we went down to the beach and had a great time in the ocean and pool about all week, other than the first day when my mate stubbed her toe in the ocean rather roughly, and it became painful for her to walk that night. But she was up and walking the next day (good old demon blood heals all, lol. That and ice, hehe) and had a good time once again. The rest of the week went off without a hitch. We came back Saturday, which I must say was irritating. Stupid people need to learn how to drive! (/sighs\)**

**Btw, me and my mate celebrated our first year of marriage Saturday. We went out Friday since we were going to be traveling Saturday. (/eyes cloud over with happiness\) We've had a great year together, and I know it will only get better from here on in.**

**Last time, the students arrived, and we all found out about Marie's cooking, hehe. Also, at the end, someone seems to have been looking upon the two. Hmm, who could it be? Lol, keep reading to find out!**

**And at long last, it's time once again! (/Cranks up some kind of music.\) It's review time!!!**

**Very Swampeh: It's alright. I understand about the wisdom teeth thing. I had mine pulled when I was 15, and it sucked. I couldn't hardly move or eat or do anything for a while. Lol, yes, poor Zane having to deal with the lovebirds. Thanks about the cooking scene. Ah, I'm sure it's not that bad with your cooking. Heh, the mysterious stalker, well, you'll find out eventually.**

**x-knight20: Thanks. LOL! (/Sees Marie explode with anime flames.\) Pray she never finds you man, or she'll disembowel you with a wooden cooking spoon with burnt rice on it.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: The other site I mentioned was just for the last show. It was ****Cool that you use the same site I do. I use it a lot for research all the time. Yep, I was on vacation last week. Ah, that sucks that you couldn't review all week, but guess what, you missed nothing, lol.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Possibly, hehe. You never know, it could just be a random person saying that, lol. And yes, poor Marie can't really cook that well. Yeah, Jaden could eat his own hand and wouldn't care.**

**ardee: Lol, yes, that poor bobcat. (/Ponders if it was a bobcat demon.\) Eh, if it was, too bad for him. Zane's sort of, but not really in some ways. Besides, I had to have him help out with the stuff in the kitchen. Can't leave it all to Illidan… oh yeah, and Marie, lol. Lol, yes, anger management for all! Hmm, to give away if my villain is OC or not… Eh, why not. He's OC. Thanks!**

**pink-kiss-candy: Yep, sure is spooky.**

**Alright, that's it for me guys. I hope everyone enjoys this chapter. As for me, I'm back to work. I hope to see lots of reviews for tomorrow, and don't forget, I'll post again all week. Enjoy everyone!**

**Chapter 13**

Early the next morning, Illidan awoke to the sun peaking through the window. Laying there in contentment with Marie snuggled into his chest, he happily sighed and closed his eyes once more. A thought immediately came to his mind that the students would want breakfast soon.

Groaning, he gently slid out of the bed, leaving Marie to continue to sleep. He quickly ran into the bathroom and showered. Coming out, he found Marie still sound asleep.

Deciding he'd tackle breakfast alone, Illidan left a note on the nightstand so when Marie would wake up she wouldn't worry too much.

Grabbing his red coat, Illidan quietly crept out of the house and locked it behind him. Checking his watch as he walked towards the dorm, he saw it was already seven.

Chiding himself softly about not getting up earlier or remembering that the students needed fed, Illidan quickly hurried into the Slifer Dorm and entered into the kitchen.

Pulling open the refrigerator, he glanced for food. There was bacon, buttermilk, and eggs in the fridge part. Pulling open the door to the freezer, Illidan found some frozen hash browns as well.

"Hmm, if only I had some biscuit mix…" he said softly.

Shutting the two doors and walking over to the cabinets, he began to rummage through till finally he found a box of Bisquick.

"Good, we're in business now." he silently commented.

Gathering up all the food, Illidan placed it onto the counter and pulled out some pans. Placing some vegetable oil a few skillets so the food wouldn't stick, Illidan placed them onto the large stove and turned the heat on.

Dumping a bag of frozen hash browns into two skillets, Illidan smiled and grabbed some pepper and salt and sprinkled it on. Once finished, he grabbed a skillet lid and placed it on top to keep them covered.

Picking up the biscuit mix, step by step, Illidan prepared the biscuit dough till finally he had enough biscuits cut out and ready to be put into a pan. Quickly locating a few, Illidan moved the biscuits into the pan and dropped them into the oven.

Turning his attention back to the hash browns, Illidan began stirring them, seeing they needed a little more time. Grabbing the bacon, he quickly placed it into the skillet and turned the heat up on it.

Slightly sighing, Illidan muttered "I wish Marie was here to help me. Then again, if she was here, everything might burn. Feels just like home…"

"Is she that bad?" called out a voice from behind.

Illidan jumped and quickly turned around. He had always prided himself on being able to sense others entering the room and not sneaking up on him, but this time he hadn't heard a thing. Turning around, he saw that it was Zane whom had entered the room.

"Don't scare me like that!" Illidan replied with a sigh of relief.

Lightly chuckling, Zane asked "Is she really that bad of a cook?"

Softly smiling, Illidan finally muttered "Sort of. She sometimes tries to rush things, and in that event, she burns stuff, or sets it on fire. Usually though, she's not that bad if she takes her time. She's just usually afraid she'll burn stuff, or gets distracted and actually burns stuff. So, I usually do the cooking just so she doesn't have to worry about it."

Zane couldn't help but let out a laugh at Illidan who only gave an annoyed look, then a look a fear. Paying no attention, Zane only continued to laugh till he felt a frying pan softly tap him on the shoulder.

Looking over his shoulder, he saw an anime flaming Marie, complete with fire flashing from her eyes. Zane quickly realized the danger he was in and instantly decided to run for it, leaving Illidan on his own.

"I should kill you right now Illidan Stormrage!" Marie threatened as she pointed the frying pan at him.

Gulping, Illidan put his hands up in a defensive gesture, saying "Now sweetie, you know I love your cooking and love you, so don't do anything rash."

Patting the frying pan in her hand as she approached, Illidan instantly felt like a deer in the headlights of a car that was about to be turned into ground beef. Still, he was frozen stiff, though his senses screamed to run from his angry wife.

She stood right in front of him and he looked straight at her, hoping for some kind of sign that he wouldn't die. Instead of dying, he got a small tap on the head by the frying pan. It was so gentle that it didn't even make him blink.

Smiling as if she had just won the lottery, she said "There you go. Now, be good from now on, or I'll really let you have it."

Those words made Illidan breathe a big sigh of relief, if not almost make him faint. Marie smiled evilly at him and then walked on over to the stove and began checking all of the food.

Gathering what was left of his sanity, Illidan quickly began checking things as well. Looking around, he noticed Zane had high tailed it out of the kitchen.

"Coward…" he darkly muttered.

Together, Illidan and Marie continued checking the bacon and hash browns till both were finished. Marie even managed to keep the food from burning, which somewhat surprised Illidan, but he didn't say a word with fear of a frying pan making contact with his head.

The two quickly gathered up some eggs and began frying them. Illidan decided they'd fry up only scrambled, seeing how that was the easiest to make for everyone.

After another five minutes, the two finished and began piling the food onto plates. Finally done, they looked out into the cafeteria to see some of the students walking in. Grabbing up the plates, they began placing them on the tables and finally took a seat to eat their own breakfast.

Zane eventually showed back up and ate breakfast, but sat with a few of the students, one in particular. This was the student that Illidan had spotted the day before that had the Winged Kuriboh for a Duel Spirit. The two seemed to be making small talk along with a couple others at the table.

After finishing up breakfast, Illidan quickly went back to the house and wrote up a schedule to meet with the students. It was already eleven o'clock, so he figured he should hurry up and get a list out.

About thirty minutes later, he came back and tacked the list up to the main bulletin board in the lounge so the students could see it. Returning to the cafeteria, he saw that most of the students had already fled to their rooms.

Helping Marie gather up the dishes, the two quickly carted them to the back and washed them up. An hour later, the two finished and went back to get ready for their meetings.

Looking over the list, Marie sighed, saying "I hope this goes over alright."

Lightly chuckling, Illidan replied "Yeah, I know the feeling, but we should try to get to know the students. After all, we can't have them pondering if we even know they exist."

Sighing once more, Marie nodded and headed back with Illidan to the headmasters offices. The two went to their separate offices and took a seat at their desks.

Looking over the list, Illidan noted there were fifteen first year students, fifteen second year students, and five third year students. Marie had the luck of getting only twenty-five female students to interview, in which ten were first year, eight were second year, and seven were third year.

Leaning back in his chair, Illidan closed his eyes, pondering what to ask each of them. Opening his eyes, he looked over a small checklist he had received of things to ask students from the Chancellor.

A few questions seemed pointless to him, so he decided to just have each student tell him a bit about themselves.

"That'd be the easiest thing to do really." he softly said aloud to himself.

Reading over the list of people to come in, Illidan saw that he had ordered the first year students in first, followed by the second, and then the third.

"Sounds easy enough…" he muttered.

After about six students had been through, Illidan interviewed one named Roxas Himora. The student had brown spiky hair, baby blue eyes, and wore a white t-shirt with a black undershirt and grey pants rather than the usual red coat.

"You realize you have to wear the uniform, right?" Illidan asked. Even though he hated the thing himself, he knew that the students and the staff had to wear them.

Nodding, Roxas replied simply "Of course, but that is for class."

"Actually, you have to wear it almost no matter what. So, you should start wearing it, alright?" Illidan said with a semi stern tone.

Sighing, Roxas nodded, and simply replied "Alright, you win."

"Good. Now, tell me about yourself. I see here that you were once a student here, but for some reason you left in the middle of the term." Illidan said with a curious look on his face.

Simply nodding, Roxas said "Yes, I was once a student here about a few years ago, but I left due that I had a problem. Somehow or another, I developed a deep case of amnesia. I went home, hoping to find out who I was, why I was here, and to try and recover my memories. Unfortunately, it didn't help, so this year, I decided to return. I'm hoping that being here I might be able to get back a few memories, if not all of them."

Nodding, Illidan replied "Ok, that's fine. Give it time, you might be able to find them sooner or later."

The two continued talking for a few more minutes before finally Illidan dismissed Roxas. Sighing, Illidan stared at the list that seemed to never shrink.

After finally getting through the first year students, Illidan began down the list of second year students. The third one to be interviewed was an interesting student.

His name was Alphonse Heiderich. He had blonde hair and brown eyes, and had happiness to him.

During the interview, Alphonse, whom preferred to be called Al, asked where Professor Banner.

Sighing, Illidan simply replied "He has turned up missing, so the school sought to put someone in his place quickly, thus me and Marie were hired."

Looking sad, Al muttered "But who is going to continue our studies of Alchemy?"

Feeling for the boy, Illidan replied "I'm not sure. Possibly another teacher can teach that class…"

"It wasn't a class! It was on Professor Banner's own free time that he taught me and Ed." Al was quick to reply.

"Hmm, well then, I don't know. I know nothing about Alchemy, and I don't know of anyone who does. Possibly you could ask the teaching board for an alchemy class." was all Illidan could reply with.

The rest of the interview was quick and soon over. Looking at his list, Illidan saw that Chazz Princeton was next.

The student soon walked in wearing his black trench coat. Illidan instantly recognized him from the day before. He was the one with the three Duel Spirits, or better known as the Ojamas. He also was the one who had said he wouldn't eat Marie's burnt rice, only to get told to eat it by an angry Marie.

Seeing he still had his black trench coat on from the day before, Illidan annoyingly commented "You need to start wearing your red coat."

Shrugging, Chazz simply replied "The Chazz doesn't do red. Black is more his thing."

"Ok, but don't blame me when you get violations from teachers or me and Marie." Illidan countered.

Again, Chazz seemed unfazed. The two talked for a short time, and towards the end of the talk, Illidan asked "What is your goal this year Chazz?"

Smirking, Chazz stood saying "To beat Jaden Yuki in a duel! I lost to that punk last year, but not this one! The Chazz will prove that he is the best, and there is nothing that Slifer Slacker can change about that!"

Sweat dropping, Illidan smiled and nodded, saying "Uh Chazz, you're a Slifer Student as well."

"I realize that!" Chazz quickly snapped back.

Lightly sighing, he smiled once more and replied "Well, that's a good goal."

A few minutes later, Chazz finally left, leaving Illidan a few moments to laugh at the previous interview.

Finally getting control, Illidan noted his next student to come in was Zane's little brother, Syrus Truesdale. Softly smiling at this, Illidan prepared for the next interview.

At long last, the light teal haired youth walked in. Illidan instantly recognized him from walking beside Jaden the day before, and that he sat with Jaden at dinner and breakfast.

After discussing about himself and what he had planned for the year, Illidan asked "So, I have one last question. Do you have any good ideas for pranks to pull on your brother?"

Syrus did an anime fall over at the comment, and replied "Well, that's an unusual question. Hmm, he's terrified of jellyfish due that one stung him long ago, but otherwise, not really."

Smiling, Illidan said "Thanks. I just thought I'd check so I could possibly have something to poke fun at him over. Maybe we should have jellyfish for dinner…"

Syrus could only laugh at the comment. Illidan thanked him for the interview and then showed Syrus out.

A few more students came and went, till finally Illidan was up to Jaden Yuki. Knowing that he wanted to ask several more personal questions, like if he knew where the rest of the Shadow Charms were, Illidan decided to keep things professional and not bother Jaden yet about such things.

Eventually, Jaden walked in and the two talked for a while. Finally, Illidan asked Jaden "What are your goals this year?"

Smiling great big, Jade replied "To duel the best of the best here at Duel Academy and become the next King of Games!"

Lightly chuckling, Illidan said "That's a tough order."

Nodding, Jaden replied "True, but I'm always up to the challenge. I can't wait to find the best duelists on campus and duel them."

Chuckling at Jaden's comments, Illidan looked at him and felt some kind of strange feeling that he knew him. It was Jaden's features that mostly made him feel this way. His brown eyes with brown hair seemed to look familiar, but Illidan was quick to dismiss it.

Finally, Illidan got to the third year students. He was finally interviewing a student named Edward Heiderich.

Illidan soon found out that Edward, who preferred to be called Ed, was Al's older brother. Both had come to the school specifically to learn to duel and learn alchemy.

Ed somewhat grumbled about Banner not being there, leaving Illidan to sigh heavily as he said "I'm sorry that Banner is gone, but we can try to get someone to teach you and your brother Alchemy."

All Ed muttered back darkly was "I wanted to learn from Banner."

Sighing once more, Illidan said "I realize that, but things can't be helped. No one knew Professor Banner was going to go missing. I am truly sorry, but there isn't we can do but try to find a replacement teacher for you. Do you wish for me to find you one?"

Ed pondered it for a moment, but finally said "If you can, I'd like it very much."

Softly smiling, Illidan nodded and said "I'll try."

The last few students were easy for Illidan to interview, with each discussing their plans for after graduation. Once he had finished, Illidan leaned back in his chair and let out a large sigh of relief.

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Marie grumbled as she slowly went through the list of the first year students. The first few were alright, but some seemed so unsure of themselves.

The next student to enter was a young girl with light blue eyes and long blonde hair that was pulled up into a long pony tail. She had a few earrings in each ear, and had a smile on her face that told Marie she thought she was better than everyone else.

Looking at the list, Marie found out this was Ino Yaman, a girl that was said to be a beauty queen, cheerleader, etc, and as Marie figured, a really girly girl. She was also an expert in Tai Chi, which did kind of surprise Marie at the least.

"_So, she has a little bit of brawn to back up her brain._" Marie mused in her mind.

After talking to Ino for a few minutes, Marie finally asked "What are your goals for this semester?"

Without thinking for a moment, she said "To beat Sakura in rank by the end of the year."

Confused, Marie asked "Who is Sakura?"

Acting as if Marie was the dumbest person in the world, Ino snobbishly replied "She is a brat with a big forehead that can't do anything right and thinks she's smarter than everyone else."

Rolling her eyes, Marie said in her mind "_Of course she is, unlike you, you miserable brat!_"

Maintaining her composure, Marie kindly said "Ok, but you should work towards a better goal."

Ino only stuck her nose up in the air and passed off Marie's comments as if it was nothing. Sighing, Marie dismissed Ino at last.

"Why me…" Marie grumbled as she looked at the list. She wasn't even halfway through the list and she already regretted setting up meetings.

Looking at the list, she saw that the next person to come in was familiar to her, but was completely surprised to see her on the list. She knew the girl's age was too young for the school, but pondered why it was on the list.

A few minutes later, a young girl with emerald eyes and long straight black hair that came down to her mid-back walked in. She was rather young, almost ten or eleven years old, according to what Marie remembered.

She softly smiled and waved, saying "Hi Aunty Marie."

Confused, Marie asked "Mariah, what are you doing here? Aren't you too young for the school?"

Sticking out her tongue, Mariah replied "Yeah, I'm a bit young, but due that I was in advanced grades, I was able to already graduate junior high school, so I'm more than ready to attend Duel Academy. I'm the youngest one yet, according to the records."

Smiling, Marie nodded. Mariah was that. "_She sure gets her intelligence from her father. Then again, Ishizu was no slouch when it came to intelligence. I guess it must run in the family._"

After a nice friendly conversation, Marie finally excused Mariah and checked her list. Checking off Mariah Scribe from the list, she saw next was Ino's rival, Sakura Higa.

Five minutes later, Sakura walked in. She had upper back length pink hair, with a small bandana tied up in it. Her teal eyes were full of happiness, but also showed a bit of fighting spirit.

Marie talked with her quietly at first, and sensed the girl wanted to prove herself. "So, you want to prove you're worthy to be here?"

Nodding, Sakura replied "Of course. I want to show I'm not just a girl who studies all the time. I want to show I can duel too, and that I'm a tough competitor as well."

Happy to see some spunk in the girl, Marie concluded the conversation, and finally moved on down the list. Soon, the first year girls were done and she moved onto the next list, the second year students.

The first student to walk in was a young girl named Kari Taka. She had short brown hair that parted in the front, with most going to the left of her head. Also, she had light brown eyes and a slender body.

After a few minutes of discussing things, Marie finally asked what Kari had planned for the year. Taking a moment to think about it, Kari finally replied "I hope to become a better duelist overall, and to remain close to my friends."

"They're important to you, aren't they?" Marie asked kindly.

Kari only nodded in reply and smiled. She was then excused, leaving Marie to look at the long list. Finally, Marie finished the second year students, but knew the third year students were coming.

"This is taking **TOO** long!" she voiced out loud with great annoyance.

Sighing, Marie read through the list and prepared for the students. The first three were kind, and happy about graduating.

Then there was the next student, who was odd at least to Marie. Her name was Winry Roc. Upon entering, Marie first noticed her brilliant baby blue eyes, along with her long straight blonde hair that came down to her mid-back. Her hair was slightly parted, with two long bangs hanging down the side of her head. In the back, she had her hair pulled back into a ponytail. Looking at her hands, Marie noticed they were callused, as if the girl had been doing quite a bit of outside work of some kind.

During their conversation, Marie asked "Did you have a job outside or something this summer?"

Smiling, Winry replied "Actually, I work on machines at my grandma's shop. I'm quite skilled at taking things apart and putting them back together, or vamping them up. Grandma says it's one heck of a talent for someone who had doctors for parents."

Nodding, Marie lightly chuckled, saying "That's a good skill to have. I wish me or my husband were good at fixing stuff. Unfortunately, we're not."

"If you have anything needing fixing, I'll be more than happy to help with it!" Winry replied with a happy look on her face.

"Thank you." was Marie's only response.


	14. Chapter 14: Dreams and Secrets Revealed

**Hey everyone! Well, it's another day, and another chapter, lol. This week so far has not been too bad. I'm mostly trying to catch up on my work, but also working on writing when I can. Other than that, nothing has really happened so far, so happy days, lol.**

**Last time, Illidan and Marie each began interviewing the student body for the Slifer Dorm and found out the goals and dreams of their students. Now that they're nearly done, what does the future hold?**

**Alright, it's time once again, so let's do it! (/Queues up some music.\) It's review time!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Yeah, it was a slow chapter, and mostly just a filler chapter. I did use it though to introduce some of the cast from the Slifer Dorm. Yeah, I had a good vacation. The underlining thing was an accident. Apparently, a link I had made got cut out and from there on everything was underlined. So sorry about that.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Good eye on Fullmetal Alchemist and Naruto names, but semi wrong on the Digimon. True, there was a name from it that is similar, but not the same person. And no, original names were hard, lol. After all, I picked out several characters, making it hard to name them all, so I cheated and borrowed names. As for the miscount, I think I had it right when I went back. I pm'ed you about it. I didn't mean to sound rude or anything in it btw if you thought that. Thanks for the comments.**

**x-knight20: Thank you. (/Sweat drops at Marie chasing you.\) I'm not getting in the middle of that. You're on your own when dealing with her. (/Notes she has you cornered now and is grinning evilly.\) Good luck...**

**ardee: Yep, updates everyday! Heh, nice that it ties up some of your time, lol. I know the feeling about getting addicted to the games. Thanks about it being funny. I tried, lol. Yeah, it was frustrating not being able to post, although I think I figured out what happened now. Hmm, a Illidan vs. Jaden duel you say? Never know, it could happen.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Yep, Winry has entered the building, along with Ed and Al. Lol, yes, yayness!**

**Alright, that's all for today. I hope you guys enjoy this next chapter and leave me some reviews to answer tomorrow. Thanks to everyone who answered last time, and thank you to the ones who've added my stories to their favorites. I noticed I got a couple of those alerts yesterday, so thank you all again. Remember, if you wish to have me answer questions, comments, or whatever, feel free to review. I enjoy answering them, and will always try my best to answer them.**

**At any rate, take care guys and enjoy!**

**Chapter 14**

After nearly another hour, the interviews were finally over. Marie jumped out of her chair and did a happy dance, but didn't know Illidan was in the doorway watching.

"Nice dance." he commented, making her jump out of her skin.

"ILLIDAN! Don't scare me like that!" she scolded.

Illidan only chuckled and pulled her into his arms. He gently placed a kiss on her forehead and said "Sorry."

Feeling bit bad over scolding him, Marie replied "It's alright. I kind of overreacted a bit."

"A bit?" Illidan asked with dripping sarcasm.

Softly growling, Marie replied "A bit too much, yes."

Lightly chuckling, Illidan said "Ok."

The two walked down to the kitchen to find Zane already hard at work cooking. Looking back at them, he smiled, saying "I thought I'd cook this time."

Both shrugged, with Illidan asking if he needed help. Zane simply shook his head no and continued cooking.

Seeing no need to stay in the kitchen anymore, the couple moved to the cafeteria area and sat down, waiting on Zane to finish up. While waiting, they chit chatted about the students, and what they hoped would happen.

"Each of them seems talented, but just lack the confidence or drive to keep moving forward." Illidan commented.

Marie shook her head, saying "Actually, a few have the drive in my groups, but they just need a chance. I think we should talk to the Chancellor about possibly making that happen."

Nodding in reply, Illidan was about to say something else when he saw smoke coming out of the kitchen area. Groaning, he quickly leapt to his feet and took off to find the source.

Marie waited and finally saw Zane and Illidan come out of the kitchen. Zane was coughing heavily and finally fell onto the table, looking completely dejected.

Chuckling, Illidan simply stated "He can't cook either."

The comment earned a glare from Marie, but he only chuckled. Finally, Marie's glare faded into a smirk and she let out a small chuckle herself.

After letting the smoke completely vacate the kitchen area, Illidan walked in and quickly fixed several pepperoni pizzas. Finally finishing, he pushed them into the ovens, letting them cook.

Not long afterwards, the pizzas finished cooking and dinner was set out for the students. All enjoyed the food, with no one complaining at all about it. As everyone finished their meal, the intercom buzzed to life.

"Attention students, I have a special announcement to make." called out the voice of Chancellor Shepherd. "Tomorrow night at seven o'clock, there will be a special three-way duel for your entertainment."

"Wow, that'll be awesome to see!" Jaden said with pure excitement.

"This should be interesting." Zane commented with his interest peaked.

Continuing, the Chancellor said "The duel shall be between three of the headmasters. One from each dorm has been selected, and shall compete."

"_He never told me there would be a duel! Will it be me or Marie?_" Illidan silently pondered.

"This duel shall be pitting the following three headmasters against one another. They are, in order by dorm, Dr. Crowler, Professor Satyr, and Professor Illidan Stormrage." announced the Chancellor.

Looking at Illidan, Marie whispered "Did you know about this?"

Shaking his head quickly, Illidan whispered back "No, I had no idea."

"Wow, our own headmaster will be in a duel. That hasn't ever happened before really. I hope he doesn't lose too badly." Chazz said out loud, which caused Illidan to grow slightly annoyed.

"Ah, come on Chazz, don't be that way. I'm sure Professor Illidan will do great!" Jaden chimed in.

"Yeah right." Chazz mumbled.

"That is all for now students. I hope all of you will be out tomorrow night to watch the duel. I assure you, it will be one to remember." the Chancellor said as the intercom finally silenced.

Picking up his dishes, along with Illidan and Marie's, Zane said "This should be good. I hope you're ready to face the other two headmasters."

Nodding, Illidan smiled and replied "Of course. I'll have to start preparing tonight though, just to make sure."

"Need any help?" Zane asked.

Shaking his head, Illidan simply replied "Nah, I'll be good. Anyways, can you take care of the movie tonight?"

Zane simply nodded in response, which caused Illidan to get up and say "Come on Marie, let's get started."

The two then quickly left the cafeteria, leaving Zane alone with the students. After piling the dishes up in the kitchen, Zane quickly pulled out a pack of DVDs and pulled one out after much consideration. He placed the DVD into the player and flipped out all the lights.

Two hours later, the students headed towards their room. As Jaden was heading back, his Duel Spirit, Winged Kuriboh, appeared and began squeaking at him. It was pointing off in the distance towards the bottom of the cliffs.

"What's that pal? You say there is a duel going on, and you sense another Duel Spirit?" asked Jaden. Winged Kuriboh simply nodded and vanished.

Thinking for a moment, Jaden finally said "I'm going to go check this out!"

Syrus, who had been ahead of Jaden, heard his friend exclaim and gave chase after him. "WAIT UP!"

Sighing, Chazz followed behind the running pair, mumbling to himself "Why do I bother some days."

The three students quickly made their way to the top of the cliff and looked down to see what was going on. Upon looking down, a spray of flames erupted into the air, causing the three to jump back.

Winged Kuriboh reappeared at that moment, squawking loudly and pointing at the origin of the flames. There stood a large dark orange dragon with large wings, sharp clawed hands and feet, and a powerful looking head. It's head had some kind of fins on the side of it, with two large horns on the top of it.

"WOW! That's a Duel Spirit! Man, that thing is huge!" Jaden exclaimed.

"Why can't my Duel Spirits be that cool looking?" Chazz said with depression in his voice.

His three Duel Spirits, the Ojama Brothers, suddenly appeared beside of him, with the yellow one saying "Ah, come on Boss, you don't mean that! You know we could take that thing easily!"

"Yeah, he's nothing compared to the three of us!" added the green brother.

"We'd take him in a fight to the finish!" the black brother added as well.

Growling softly, Chazz swatted at the three, saying "Zip it!"

Looking back over the cliff, the three saw that it was a duel between both headmasters of the Slifer Dorm. Marie had only 100 life points, but had the large orange dragon out on her field. Illidan's field only had one face down card, and he had 1100 life points left.

"You can't win this one Illidan. To beat me, you'll have to go through my Tyrant Dragon, which has 2900 attack points." Marie boasted confidently.

Smirking, Illidan replied "We'll see, won't we. Don't forget, it's my move now, so it's time to see if I can beat you!"

Drawing his card, Illidan lightly chuckled, saying "It's time to end this Marie. I summon Silent Magician LV4 (1000/1000) to the field!"

A mage dressed in white and blue robes appeared onto the field. It was a very young mage by the looks of his face. He had light brown eyes, with silver hair.

Chuckling, Marie said "If that's the monster that's going to end things, I don't think I have much to fear."

Smirking at her overconfidence, Illidan pointed to his face down card, which lifted up to reveal itself, causing Marie to stop chuckling and gulped with worry reflecting in her eyes.

"I know you've seen this spell card a million times before. Meet my Level Up! Thanks to this card, I can now sacrifice my Silent Magician LV4 for Silent Magician LV8 (3500/1000)!"

In a flash, the mage vanished only to be replaced by a stronger mage that looked similar. It was like the mage had aged from a child into an adult. He was still dressed the same, but his muscles were most definitely more toned, and his hair hung lower down his back.

"Let's wrap this up! Go Silent Magician, attack with Silent Scepter attack!" Upon getting his orders, the mage leapt into the air and fired a sphere of white magical energy straight at the orange dragon, which was hit head on by the sphere. The dragon shrieked out in pain, but couldn't escape and was blown into millions of pieces. The remainder of the blast streaked forward, slamming into Marie, who stood her ground barely. As the smoke dissipated from the explosions, Marie's life points dropped to zero, causing the remaining holograms to vanish.

Quickly running to Marie, Illidan asked "Are you alright?"

Smiling up at him, she nodded. Illidan offered a helping hand, in which Marie took hold of, but pulled him down instead. Once falling down, she rolled over on top of him, pinning him to the ground. She leaned over, draping her hair over the two of their faces, giving them a curtain of privacy. Under the curtain, she pulled in close, locking lips with him in a passionate kiss.

On the cliff, Jaden, Syrus, and Chazz were giving off a quiet "Eww!" sound, causing the three to quickly leave the area. As they were walking back, Jaden put his arms behind his head.

Noting Jaden's posture, Syrus asked "What's up Jay?"

Smiling, Jaden replied "Not much. Just thinking about how awesome the end of that duel was. I wouldn't have guessed that the headmasters had those kinds of cards."

"Well duh they'd have powerful cards!" interrupted Chazz.

Thinking for a moment, Jaden finally replied "I guess so. Still, I wonder what kind of decks they run, and if Professor Marie even realizes she has a Duel Spirit."

The three only continued on till they reached the Slifer Dorm, with both Syrus and Jaden going to their room and Chazz entering his own.

Back on the beach, Marie slowly pulled back and smiled at Illidan, who only smiled back. "I see we drove our company away." he simply stated.

Lightly chuckling, Marie said "Yes, we managed to drive them away. Just think, in another year or so though, they'll be all over stuff like this."

Nodding in reply, Illidan then suddenly flipped Marie over onto her back, catching her by complete surprise. He pinned her arms down to the soft sand and stared into her chocolate orbs.

He quickly drew her into a kiss that was long and deep. After a few moments, he drew back and started kissing down the side of her neck, causing a small moan of pleasure to escape her lips.

"We shouldn't here. Someone will find us." she pleaded while struggling to keep from stopping him.

Knowing she was right, Illidan got off of her body, which was feverishly warm, much like his own. In a single swoop, he lifted her bridal style and ran off towards the dorms.

In the shadows of the cliffs, a figure watched and smirked evilly. "Enjoy your time now, for soon it will end, and our time shall begin." the figure said softly.

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"**ILLIDAN!**" Marie screamed as she sat up in the bed.

Illidan had woken up a few moments before, when he noticed Marie's restless sleep, and now held her in a warm embrace from behind. Her face was drenched in sweat, and tears were rolling down her cheeks. Her body was also shaking uncontrollably.

"It's alright, I'm here." Illidan cooed to her, trying hard to calm her down.

Marie just grasped onto his arm and let her tears flow freely, as her body shuttered with sadness. For almost thirty minutes, she just sat there in Illidan's arms, softly sobbing.

Finally, once finished, she dried her tears, and turned around, hugging Illidan tightly. Letting go, Illidan lightly touched her cheek and kissed it.

"Now, what is wrong dearest?" he asked softly.

Sighing, Marie slowly said "It was a horrible nightmare."

Thinking for a moment, Illidan asked "Are you sure it was a nightmare and not a vision?"

Shaking her head, Marie quickly replied "No, it couldn't have been a vision. Too many things were out of place. Trust me, I don't believe it was a vision. I considered that thought already, but too many things didn't fit in."

Sighing, Illidan nodded and said "Why don't you tell me about it then."

Nodding lightly, Marie started. "Well, for some reason, you were dueling. I'm not entirely sure, but your opponent looked somewhat like Zell…"

Curious, Illidan asked "You mean Zell from ancient times?"

Marie slowly nodded, saying "That's the part I know means it wasn't a vision. He died all those years ago, so I know he's not going to be dueling you anytime soon. Anyways, I saw you and him dueling, well, at least a glimpse of him as Anubis…"

"Anubis?" Illidan asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes, Anubis. For some reason, it was on your field, and it was destroyed, defending you I guess. I watched as Anubis exploded, with the remainder of the damage striking you. It was a Shadow Game, and you were almost instantly gone. All I could do was watch as you faded away. I wasn't able to move or anything, but just had to stand there and watch you fade away."

Illidan noticed tears forming in her eyes once more, and was quick to draw her into his warm hug. Stroking her hair gently, Illidan softly said "Don't worry, it was just a dream. I'll never leave you, I promise."

Nodding slowly, Marie snuggled into his chest, sighing softly as her tears stopped. She softly smiled as she felt his protective arms surround her, pulling her closer to his chest.

Within minutes, Marie fell fast asleep. Smiling at his wife, Illidan softly kissed the top of her head. "_Not just my wife, but my best friend, my lover, my soul-mate._"

Soon enough, Illidan laid the two of them down and pulled the blanket back over their bodies. Slowly, sleep overcame Illidan, allowing the two to fall into a deep asleep.

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The next day went smoothly. The students mostly stayed in their rooms, with most of them catching up with old friends or making new ones with the freshmen. The day was just peaceful for the most part.

During the day, Mariah dropped by Illidan and Marie's little house. The two kindly let the young girl in and welcomed her to their home.

"So, what brings you here Mariah?" Illidan asked.

Smiling nicely, Mariah handed the two a letter that had been in her clutches since she came to their home. "Mom and Dad asked me to give this to the two of you. Yesterday, there was really no chance to, but since the two of you are together today, I thought I'd better get it to you."

Taking the letter from Mariah, Illidan kindly said "Thank you very much Mariah. By the way, how are your parents?"

"They're doing good. They were a bit sad that I was going to Duel Academy this year, but were happy to learn the two of you would be here." she nicely said.

Bowing, Mariah said "I'll be leaving now. I'll see you all later at dinner."

With that said, Mariah walked out of the house before the two could say another word.

"She's a sweet girl still." Marie commented.

Nodding, Illidan replied "Yes, she is. I'm happy that Ishizu and Shadi have such a lovely daughter. She'll be a heart breaker one day soon. I can only imagine Shadi's reaction when she starts dating soon."

Both lightly chuckled, and Illidan then turned his attention to the letter. Opening it, he pulled it out and began to read aloud to Marie.

"Dear Illidan and Marie,

I'm sorry that I could not personally deliver this letter, but I figured Mariah could handle the job. It hasn't been long since we saw the two of you at your graduation. I'm happy that you each have a job with the school. Mariah was really surprised to hear that the two of you would be working at the academy. We were somewhat relieved ourselves to find out that she'd at least have a few friendly faces there.

It is time I get down to business. As you know, I've been recording your family's history for five millennia. I kept records of all the Tomb Keepers, along with the ones that were ruling Egypt for a short time. I have discovered that one of your descendants is actually one of your students. It is… Mariah!"

Illidan only grumbled as he read this part of the letter. Marie couldn't help but giggle lightly, as Illidan finally smiled as he returned to reading out loud the letter.

"… I know, that joke wasn't too funny, but I had to try. You know me and my dry sense of humor. You'd think after five millennia I'd learn a good joke or two. Anyways, in all seriousness, there is another descendant. He came directly from your family line, although his last name has changed of course. He was born from your son's, Fahd, side of the family. The name of the descendant is Jaden Yuki. I'm sure you've heard of him seeing how he is in your dorm according to my records.

Before you start pondering if I'm sure or not, remember whom you're questioning. I am one hundred percent sure that he is your descendant. I've tracked each and every family member that has come into your family for five millennia, and I know for sure that he is a descendant.

I'm unsure what you will do with this information. I just wanted you two to know who was there. Also, I have not made contact with this boy. The rest of your past family members, I did make some kind of contact, either in person or by letter. I may have to finally break down and start using email eventually if your family line continues on as long as it has, but then again, it's no longer my job to keep track, hehe. I do hope that this information is helpful.

In closing, I hope all goes well for the two of you. I look forward to seeing the two of you whenever it is possible. Good bye for now.

Shadi"

Upon ending his reading, Illidan folded the letter up and placed it on the coffee table.

"So, Jaden is part of our family…" he said softly.

Thinking for a moment, Marie finally said "It does make sense I guess. The incident last year with the Shadow Riders and Sacred Beasts, the fact he can see Duel Spirits, and the fact he is able to control the Shadow Charms he has. I'm amazed that our blood line flows that strongly through him."

Shaking his head, Illidan replied with "No, I think that's not it. Our blood line is very thin now. I'd say it was more heart than anything. Jaden fought off of that I bet. Much like us, he fights to protect the ones he cares about. I am glad that that lesson wasn't lost over time."

"What should we do about this?" Marie asked timidly.

Taking a few seconds to think, Illidan finally said "We'll wait on telling him. Possibly this winter break we'll tell him. From what I understand, he doesn't go home very often, if ever. Anyways, we'll talk to him then about it. That should give us time to think of what to say to him."

Nodding in reply, Marie kissed Illidan on the cheek and walked out of the room. He only stood there, thinking about the new news.

"_Shadi, you always are full of surprises._" Illidan thought silently.


	15. Chapter 15: Machines and Food, Pt 1

**Hey everyone! So, not much is new, other than the storms we keep getting, although they're not that bad when I'm awake. Eh, that and I'm sleepy. (/Yawns, revealing fangs.\) I need a nap… No rest for the weary though. (/Sighs\)**

**Last time, Illidan found out he'd be in a three way duel with the other two headmasters. After a bit of practice with Marie, he seems to be set to do battle with them. Also, Marie had a dream, or was it? Nothing makes sense from it, so maybe it was a nightmare. Finally, Jaden is Illidan's long lost descendant, explaining a few things. How will the duel go? Will Illidan and Marie tell Jaden the truth? And once more, will Zane ever learn to cook!?**

**Alright, let's get down to it. Review time!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Lol, not much difference, but it's better. Heh, interesting, lol. But yes, Jaden is Illidan's descendant. Accident you say!? Never!**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Eh, I didn't figure you had forgotten me yet. I'm hard to, lol. It's cool about you being busy. Life is that way after all. Good luck with college btw. Yes, the lovely computer of doom! Heh, they're an interesting lineup, that's for sure. Thanks about the Jaden comment. I always did wonder about his family also, so I thought why not say he was a descendant. He has some of their looks, or at least how they would look in mind, so it only made a bit of sense. Thanks about my writing. Yes, it should be fun to see Crowler and Satyr getting their game on with Illidan.**

**Isis the Sphinx: LOL! Yes, Shadi needs to get with the program and become technological. It's cool about the PM. We'll see about the cameo students, hehe.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Yes, the mysterious figure. Could be anyone, even me…**

**x-knight20: Yep, he's their descendant. (/Watches angry Marie smacking you repeatedly without mercy.\) Ouch! That has to hurt. (/Watches as Marie storms away with a your face print engraved into the frying pan.\)**

**Ok, that's it for me today. I've got lots of work to do, so I'll check out the reviews from today later. Thanks everyone!**

**Chapter 15**

As the day ended, the students became more and more excited about the upcoming duel. Many were curious to see how the duel would go. Some thought that Dr. Crowler would take the duel easily, while others thought that Professor Satyr would win the duel. Very few thought Illidan stood a chance.

Finally, the time for the duel came, causing the students to pack into the stadium. The Chancellor waited at the ring for everyone to enter. Once the crowd was packed in, he prepared to kick things off. Before he could though, a student brought a note to him. Reading it, he sighed, but nodded to the student.

Clearing his throat, the Chancellor said "Good evening students! I hope you're ready for a good show, cause this duel will be one to remember!"

All of the students cheered at the comments as the remainder of the people came to sit in. The few were Marie and Zane, whom had been with Illidan up till a few moments ago.

Taking a seat below Jaden and his friends, Marie looked around the room and smiled. "_The place is packed. I hope they're not disappointed when they watch this duel._"

Sitting down with his friends, Zane softly smiled.

"Great to see you Zane!" called out Jaden.

Nodding to Jaden, Zane replied "It's good to see you too Jaden."

"Now students," interrupted the Chancellor, "let's bring in the duelists for tonight's event! First, from the Obelisk Blue Dorm, give it up for Headmaster Crowler!"

Most of the Obelisk Blue students cheered, while some booed. Dr. Crowler ignored them though as he walked out with his strange Duel Disk hanging from around his neck. It looked like a large white keyboard hanging on his neck, but it was actually a large Duel Disk. Making it to the ring, he smirked as he stood in place.

"Next, there has been a small change. Unfortunately, Professor Satyr could not make it tonight due to being sick, but he did send in a substitute, whom I'm going to allow. Meet Daisuki Kamen, or better known as Curry Mask!"

The students were baffled as a man wearing a brown paper bag with menacing looking eye holes and a cut open for his mouth and nose appeared. He had a black thin mustache showing in the bag, had an orange cape on his back, and wore an apron that covered a Ra Yellow uniform.

Clearing his throat once more, Chancellor Shepherd said "And finally, our last headmaster. He is new here, so give him a big welcome! Give it up for Professor Illidan Stormrage!"

A majority of the Slifer Red students cheered on their headmaster as he walked out. Marie, along with the others behind her, especially clapped louder for Illidan.

As Illidan made his way to the ring, he saw the one known as Curry Mask, and lightly chuckled. "_That is the worst disguise ever. Who does Professor Satyr think he's fooling?_"

Looking around, he saw everyone didn't know who it was. Even Marie seemed mystified by the stranger in the brown paper bag. Letting out a small sigh, Illidan only continued on and entered the ring with the others.

With all three competitors in the ring, Chancellor Shepherd once again spoke, saying "The rules to this duel are simple. No competitors may attack on the first turn. Once the first turn for each is over, you may attack whomever you wish. Also, you may help anyone that you wish, that is if you so choose so. As well, each of you will start with 4,000 life points. Finally, the only way to win is to be the last duelist standing."

"The turn ordering is simple. Dr. Crowler shall start, followed by Curry Mask, and finally Professor Stormrage shall finish up order."

Each of the three competitors nodded, and the Chancellor said "Competitors, to your places!"

The three slowly moved to their positions that were marked on the field. The dueling ring was used for tag team duels and singles matches, but three way duels was a first for it. Upon reaching their positions, each pulled their decks out and shuffled them, then reinserted them into their deck slots on their Duel Disks. Each Duel Disk soon activated, with Curry Mask and Illidan's pushing out and firing a small blade arm out to expand for extra slots. The three Duel Disks then lit up, signifying that the duel was soon to start.

Getting off the stage, the Chancellor called out "Begin!"

"Game on!" the three in the ring simultaneously said as they drew five cards from their decks.

Putting his hand up to his card slot, Dr. Crowler caused a motion sensor to activate which pushed one card out from his deck. "I'll kick things off. I hope you're both in for a quick and painful defeat. I'll begin by playing the spell card Ancient Gear Castle!"

A large castle with gears, cannons, and a large rocket in the drawbridge appeared onto the field. As it finally ascended, it let out a small bit of steam from it's sides.

"With this on the field, all of my monsters with 'Ancient Gear' in their name gain 300 more attack points. Plus, each and every time I Normal Summon or Set a monster, this card also receives a Spell Counter. I'll explain the reasoning for this later. For now, it's time I summon my Ancient Gear Soldier (1300 + 300 1600/1300)!"

A machine type monster with gears within it's armor appeared on the field. It's right arm had a gun attached instead of a hand, that appeared to be a rotary machine gun. Most of it's body had dull grey armor, but a few light grey gears stuck out as well.

"To end my turn, I'll place this face down. Let's see what you two have now, shall we." (Crowler 4000, Mask 4000, Illidan 4000)

Drawing his card, Curry Mask said in a thick Spanish accent "Today I'll be serving a hearty plate of defeat to the two of you. To start things off, I'll play the spell card that will have your mouths watering and begging for some of my cooking. I play Curry Pot!"

A large brown pot with a huge soup ladle sticking out of it appeared onto the field beside of the masked main. Small wisps of steam were coming from the pot, and to everyone around, it smelled exactly like curry.

"This handy spell card sends monsters from the Graveyard to the removed from play pile instead, where they become ingredients for my curry. Next, I'll summon a scrumptious monster known as Potatoman (900/800) to the field in defense." A potato monster with arms and legs appeared onto the field and took a kneeling position.

"Finally, I'll put one face down card onto the back burner for later. Let us see if you can cook something up Mr. Stormrage!" (Crowler 4000, Mask 4000, Illidan 4000)

"Wow, that Curry Mask sure has a strange deck." Syrus commented.

Rubbing his stomach, Jaden replied "I wonder if he'd cook us something up after the duel."

Marie stared intently at the masked man, but still had no clue who it was. "_I wonder if he could do my cooking at the dorm…_" she pondered.

Seeing everyone was still clueless, Illidan's eyes narrowed. "_You've got to be kidding me… Come on Marie, even you should be able to guess that this chef in a bag is none other than Satyr!_"

Letting out a small anime sigh smoke, Illidan drew his card and smiled, saying "I may not be a chef, but I'm more than willing to hand the two of you a helping heaping pile of defeat! I'll start off with by summoning my Skilled White Magician (1700/1900) in defense."

A mage in white robes and cloak with a white hood and staff appeared onto the field in a crouching position. On his cloak, there were three half spheres: one on each shoulder, with one on his chest.

"Why did Professor Stormrage place that thing in defense mode? It's clearly the strongest monster." Syrus said with a strange look of confusion on his face.

Smirking, Zane chimed in "He's planning his moves out is why Syrus."

Syrus looked to his brother for an answer, but received one from Bastion, whom said "He could have played it in attack mode, but he's thinking about next turn. For now, his mage would have had the upper hand, but not for long. Crowler has a turn next, followed by our masked stranger. Each of them could possibly summon a stronger monster, thus leaving Illidan wide open. See now?"

Seeing now what Bastion was talking about, Syrus nodded while Jaden only looked on.

"He's setting them up, I can feel it." Jaden said a loud.

Chazz simply muttered "Yeah right."

Back on the field, Illidan pulled another card from his hand, saying "Next, I'll play the spell card Magical Blast! Here's how it works: I need at least one Spellcaster type monster on my field to activate it. Since I have one, I now get to deal you two each 200 points of damage for each Spellcaster on the field!"

The spell card glowed brightly as two blasts of red, blue, and purple mixture of energy flashed from it. One struck Crowler, making him squawk, while the other hit the masked man, making him grit his teeth a little.

"By the way, since I played a spell card, my mage's special ability is activated. He now gains one Spell Counter. Each time a spell card is played, he gains another, and can have a max of three. I'll explain what happens when I have all three though." The small sphere on the mage's shoulder began to glow white.

"To wrap things up, I'll place a mystery face down card for you all." (Crowler 3800, Mask 3800, Illidan 4000)

Somewhat irritated, Crowler drew his next card and called out "I summon another Ancient Gear Soldier (1300 + 300 1600/1300) to the field." Another mechanical soldier made up of old metal and gears appeared on the field beside of it's comrade.

"My first Ancient Gear Soldier, make that potato a Swiss potato with Rotary Fire!"

Raising it's gun, the mechanical soldier's gun barrel began to spin rapidly, till finally, a series of shots came pouring out. The shots poured through the small potato creature easily, leaving it filled with holes. Instead of exploding though, the creature was flung into the large pot that was simmering.

Lightly chuckling, Curry Mask said "Why thank you Señor Crowler, cause now you've triggered my trap card! Go Spell Spice Cumin! Thanks to this trap card, when I lost my Potatoman, I get to special summon a new level 4 or lower monster from my hand. I choose to summon my Carrotman (800/900) in defense mode."

An orange carrot monster with a pair of skinny arms and legs appeared onto the field in a kneeling position.

Growling in frustration, Crowler yelled out "Fine, I'll cut that carrot down too! Ancient Gear Soldier, obliterate that carrot!"

Taking aim, the second mechanical soldier fired it's rotary gun, easily sending bullets through the weaker monster. As before, like it's comrade, it fell into the large pot.

"I believe that's enough destruction for now. Go ahead and take your turn you masked fruitcake!" (Crowler 3800, Mask 3800, Illidan 4000)

"Don't insult the chef, or you get no dessert!" called out Curry Mask as he drew his card. Showing the card, he said "I play Pot of Greed, allowing me to draw two new cards!"

Picking up two cards, Curry Mask lightly chuckled, saying "Watch this! I start by summoning my Jerry Beans Man (1750/0)."

A green colored bean with a few lines for a face with pink cheeks appeared onto the field. In one stick hand with a yellow glove was a sword, and in the other was hand with a red glove was a shield. On his back was a blue cape, and his feet consisted of a pink bean like foot and a yellow bean like foot.

"What in the world is that thing!?" Crowler hysterically asked.

"He is Jerry Beans Man, the defender of beans, and conqueror of plants! But he's not alone, cause I'm playing a spell card known as Reasoning! This allows one of you two to guess a monster level. I get to draw from my deck till I find a monster, while all other cards go to the Graveyard. Once I pick one up, that monster is shown to you two. If you're right, it goes to the Graveyard. Guess wrong though, and it is special summoned! So, Señor Stormrage, guess a monster level."

Taking a moment to ponder a level, Illidan soon replied "Level four."

Nodding, Curry Mask drew his first card. "It is Spell Spice Cinnamon, which is of course a spell card. Next card up is my trap, Ultimate Offering. Ah, but this next card is a monster card! I just drew this!"

Flipping the card around to show the others, Illidan saw it was not a level four monster. It was a level three!

"Since my monster is a level three monster, I can now special summon it, so come forth Onionman (1200/1200)!" An onion with small skinny arms and legs appeared onto the field.

"Next, it's time to kick things up a notch! I play the spicy spell card called Spell Spice Red Pepper! Thanks to this card, my onion and bean gain 300 attack points (1200 + 300 1500/1200) (1750 + 300 2050/0)! Also, there is a downside to the two of you. Each of your monsters lose 300 attack points (1600 – 300 1300/1300) (1600 – 300 1300/1300) (1700 – 300 1400/1900)!"

Each of the plant monsters glowed with red flames as their strength increased. The two machine soldiers and the white mage each started losing points as the flames made the mage sneeze and the two machines melt slightly.

"Time to mix it up! Onionman, obliterate that scrap heap with Onion Musk!" With a slow amount of speed, the onion lurched forward and released a blast of onion stench at the mechanical soldier that let out a mechanical moan and finally exploded into pieces. The pieces were suddenly sucked into the large pot on the field, making it bubble a little more.

"Oh yeah, now we're cooking! Jerry Beans Man, get in there and give that soldier some bam!" Rushing forward, the small bean soldier slashed the mechanical soldier in half easily, causing it to spray a series of sparks. A small explosion ensued, blowing pieces of the robot all over, which then flew into the large pot as the other one had. This whole scene caused Crowler to let out a small squeal.

"Moving to the end of this turn, I play the spell card known as Spell Spice Red Cinnamon. This sweet spell card now switches the mode of all monsters. So, my two monsters now switch to defense while your mage takes a stand." Both the bean and onion creatures each took a knee while the white cloaked mage stood up into an attack position.

"To leave you both, I'll place one card face down. Let's see if you can get anything cooking Señor Stormrage." (Crowler 2850, Mask 3800, Illidan 4000)

Drawing his card, Illidan only smirked, saying "It was very kind of you to play all those spell cards last turn, because you helped me up with getting enough Spell Counters on my Skilled White Magician."

Confused, Curry Mask asked "What do you mean? I thought it only gained Spell Counters when you played spell cards!"

Shaking his head, Illidan quickly replied "No, he gains Spell Counters whenever any spell card is played, by anyone. And now…" pointing to his mage, "he has three! So, I now remove all three and sacrifice him to activate his special ability! By doing this, I can special summon a certain monster from my hand, deck, or Graveyard. The monster is currently in my hand, so I now get to special summon him! Farewell Skilled White Magician and hello Buster Blader (2600/2300)!"

The white mage smiled slightly as his three counters dimmed and he vanished, only to be seen placed into the large pot. In his place, a large warrior with purple, silver, and some gold trimmed armor, a purple hood over his head, with red eyes, two small prongs on his head, and a large lance on his back appeared onto the field.

"Next, I summon my Luster Dragon (1900/1600) to help heat things up a bit more!" A sapphire colored dragon with ruby colored eyes, bone like wings, and sharp clawed hands and feet let out a roar as it made it let it's presence be known on the field.

"By the way, since I now have my dragon on the field, Buster Blader's special ability kicks in. For each Dragon type monster on the field or in our Graveyards, he gains 500 attack points (2600 + 500 3100/2300)!"

The purple armored warrior let out a small cry as his body began to glow lightly. Within a moment, his body stopped glowing as his points increased.

Glancing at the field, Illidan noticed Crowler had one face down card, but an empty field otherwise. Looking over at Curry Mask's field, he saw he had two monsters, each in defense, and with relatively low defense points.

Deciding to do the safe thing, Illidan called out "Luster Dragon, attack Crowler directly with Ruby Blast!"

Letting out a small roar, the dragon launched into the air, taking aim at it's target. As it opened it's mouth, ruby energy was seen. With ease, the dragon spat a ruby sphere at Crowler, who only let out a small shrill as he was struck.

As the smoke cleared, Crowler loudly yelled "HOW DARE YOU STRIKE ME!"

Lightly chuckling, Illidan replied "It was easy. You're wide open, so why not attack you."

Fuming, Crowler quickly snapped back "You'll pay for that comment, but in the mean time, your attack allowed me to activate my trap card, Damage Condenser! Thanks to this, when I take damage to my life points, I may discard one card from my hand, and then I can special summon a monster from my deck with the same number of attack points or less than the damage I took! I send my Ancient Gear Beast to the Graveyard, which of course gets removed thanks to that masked buffoons Curry Pot. No matter though, because now I can special summon my Ancient Gear (100/800) to the field!"

A strange machine propped up with two mechanical stilts and a small tire appeared onto the field. It was composed of many gears, with the top of it having a large gear.

Confused, Illidan asked "Why summon that?"

Laughing victoriously, Crowler wagged a finger and saying "It's all part of my plan! You'll see soon enough!"

Not really caring, Illidan turned his attention back to Curry Mask. "_He's got two monsters still. I'd better trim them down._"

"Buster Blader, slice and dice that Jerry Beans Man with Dragon Lance Slash!" Letting out a small battle cry, the purple armored warrior rushed forward, drawing his large lance from off his back. In a fluent motion, he slashed the bean creature into three pieces, causing the creature to cry out in pain as it was thrown into the large pot.

"I think that's enough damage for one turn." (Crowler 950, Mask 3800, Illidan 4000)


	16. Chapter 16: Machines and Food, Pt 2

**Hello everyone! Well, it's a new day, with new fun, lol. Actually, today is pretty cool. One of the owners of the company I work for, and the guy that is over us that is in Washington, DC, is coming down for a half of day of fun. We get one a year, and ours happens to be today, so yay, lol. Other than that, I've been hard at work on stuff still. I've got so much stuff backing up here at work, yet it's not due to me somewhat, lol. (/sighs\) I'll finish it up though.**

**Last time, Illidan, Curry Mask, and Crowler began their three way duel with Crowler not faring too well so far. Still, it's early in the duel, but who will come out on top?**

**Alright, it's time once more! That's right, it's review time!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Lol, thanks. True, I didn't notice that about Buster Blader till you mentioned it. I guess I was thinking Dark Paladin's effect still. Oh well, it'll work out. Thanks for pointing that out to me.**

**x-knight20: Lol, glad you're still alive. Yep, Illidan's facing a cross dresser and a cook with a paper bag on his head. Life is just great for him, lol. Seto probably found them in a catalog, knowing him. Probably the same one Pegasus used to use for his hired hands. Hasselberry might be. Wait and see, lol. As for the Light of Ruin, never know. Illidan fight all four Egyptian Gods!? Never! Well, possibly never, lol. Glad to see you don't have too much brain damage. Just never mention her cooking again and you'll be alright. (/Pats you on the back, only to hear something crack.\) Eh, you're very breakable.**

**ardee: Lol, possibly he'll summon Ultimate Chocolate Cake Dragon of Doomed Ice-Cream and Salad God Knight. Thanks for the dueling comment. Yep, Jaden is Illidan's descendant. Heh, I wouldn't include the GX crew if they didn't have some part to play. Never know about Crowler. He could hang on and win it all! In his dreams at least, lol. Heh, I'm not worried about the bobcat if it was a half demon or demon. Either one should watch out for this half dog demon. (/Watches anime flames coming off of Marie grow larger. She sprints forward and smashes the shield with her fist.\) I think you're going to need a bigger shield, and a doctor…**

**Isis the Sphinx: Lol, yes, a normal chapter with a duel. Heh, Illidan would attack anyone in a duel. Don't matter who you are, except maybe Marie unless it's one on one.**

**Alright, that's it for me today. I hope you all enjoy this chapter. Thank you all for your reviews so far. They're very helpful and inspiring. Later!**

**Chapter 16**

Glaring at Curry Mask and next Illidan, Crowler drew his next card, squawking "You two shall pay dearly for your last attacks on me! I first activate my Ancient Gear's special ability. While it's on the field, I may special summon another Ancient Gear from my hand. And I happen to have another right here!"

Crowler quickly drew the card from his hand with quick movements and slapped it to his Duel Disk. Another gear structure was erected, taking up a position beside it's twin.

"I sacrifice both in order to summon your worst nightmare, my Ancient Gear Golem (3000 + 300 3300/3000)!"

Both gear creatures vanished in a flash of light. A large, tall gear monster composed of many gears and dull grey metal rose up from the ground. It's right eye flashed red as it finally made it to it's full height.

Chuckling manically, Crowler pointed at Curry Mask, screaming "Go Ancient Gear Golem, crush that onion with Mechanized Melee!"

Following the orders of it's master, the large creatures gears began to grind away at a high rate of speed. Reaching it's right arm back as it prepared to fight, the creature made a large mechanical moan. With what looked like ease, the machine behemoth launched it's right arm forward, throwing a fist straight at the onion, which was easily crushed under the weight of the blast, with the pieces of it flying into the large pot.

Laughing still, Crowler soon said "By the way, when Ancient Gear Golem attacks, the difference in his attack points and your monster's defense points are dealt directly to your life points!"

Curry Mask had little time to gasp as the blast went through his onion and struck him hard, knocking him backwards. He managed to stay standing, but was quite shaken.

After a moment, he straightened himself and walked back to his position, but lightly chuckled. Growing annoyed, Crowler yelled "What are you chuckling about!?"

Still chuckling, Curry Mask placed his hands on his hips, saying "You made a major mistake there señor. You see, you have just activated my Curry Pot's special ability. When Carrotman, Potatoman, and Onionman are all three removed from play, I can use it's first effect to destroy all monsters on the field. So, say farewell to your monsters, cause they're about to become a part of my stew!"

The monsters on the field all suddenly vanished in a puff of smoke, only to be replaced by large pieces of meet. The new pieces of meet instantly flew into the boiling pot, which seemed to boil even more.

All Crowler and Illidan could do was angrily growl at the loss of their monsters, but Curry Mask smirked. "I'm not finished, for there is another effect to my Curry Pot! Now I can special summon a new monster, who is the master piece of my deck! Welcome the mighty cook known as Curry Fiend (?/?)!"

Appearing onto the field in a puff of smoke, a monster with a large spoon staff in his oven mitt gloved right hand, a rice cooking pot in his oven mitt gloved left hand, a large chef's hat on his head, a red flowing cape on his back, plate shoulder pads, fork feet, a carrot goatee, onion belt, and white metallic body.

"WHAT THE HECK IS THAT THING!?" squawked Crowler in complete surprise.

Chuckling, Curry Mask replied "He is Curry Fiend, and is here to serve a healthy heaping of defeat to both of you!"

Glancing at the monster's stat bar, Illidan calmly stated "He has zero points though."

Nodding, Curry Mask quickly replied "True, but his effect now kicks in! You see, for each and every card in my Graveyard with the word 'Spice' in it, my monster gains 200 points. Right now, I have four 'Spice' cards in my Graveyard, granting my monster an additional 800 points (0 + 200 4 800/0 + 200 4 800)!"

The chef like monster glowed slightly red as it's energy increased. Smiling at the results, Curry Mask continued saying "For his next effect, he now gains 300 points for each and every monster in the removed from play pile! That means everyone's removed from play pile that is!"

Everyone, including Crowler and Illidan, gasped at the news of the monster's effect. Marie slightly sweated, saying under her breath "That means that thing can take either of the two out!"

"First, I count all the monsters I have lost. There was Potatoman, Carrotman, Onionman, and finally, Jerry Beans Man. That's four monsters, meaning Curry Fiend gains another 1200 points (800 + 300 4 2000/800 + 300 4 2000)!"

Once again, the chef like monster glowed red as it's strength increased. Still smirking, Curry Mask added "Next, the monsters in Señor Crowler's pile are added, so let's do a quick run down. He had two Ancient Gear Soldiers, along with two Ancient Gears, and finally an Ancient Gear Golem, which counts for five monsters! Thanks to those five, Curry Fiend now gains 1500 more points (2000 + 300 5 3500/2000 + 300 5 3500)!"

Again, the chef like monster glowed red as it became even stronger than before. Pointing a finger at Illidan, Curry Fiend arrogantly said "And now Señor Stormrage, your three monsters, Skilled White Magician, Buster Blader, and Luster Dragon, give my Curry Fiend 900 more points (3500 + 900 4400/3500 + 900 4400)!"

Glowing red once more, the chef monster let out a small roar as it's power reached maximum. The crowd, along with Crowler and Illidan, saw that the monster now had the points to wipe out one person easily.

Sweat formed on Crowler's brow, as he slowly said "Well, so what if your monster is that strong! It's still my turn, so I place one card face down to end my turn." (Crowler 950, Mask 1700, Illidan 4000)

"He can take out either Doctor Crowler or Professor Stormrage with just one shot!" called out a surprised Syrus.

Thinking for a moment, Jaden replied "True Sy, but who says they'll go down that easily. I think Professor Stormrage has a plan. He's not as worried as Doctor Crowler."

Nodding, Syrus looked back at the duel, but like the others, he wasn't too sure. Things didn't seem in the favor of either Crowler or Illidan.

Marie on the other hand was sweating at the stats of the new creature on the field. "_With 4400 points, he has a choice of taking out either person. Illidan has the most life points, but he has a face down, which most likely will protect him. Crowler though is faking it I bet. I just hope Illidan knows what he is doing._"

Drawing his card, Curry Mask declared "Curry Fiend, let's end Doctor Crowler's duel! Attack him directly with Hot Jambalaya!"

The spoon staff of the chef began to glow as he brought it about and flung hot boiling curry at Crowler. All Crowler could do was howl in pain as the heat was excruciating. At long last, his life points dropped to zero, causing him to fall to his knees.

Standing, the Chancellor said "Doctor Crowler is officially eliminated from this duel. Now only Curry Mask and Professor Stormrage remain!"

Curry Mask only smirked at this, saying "I'll end my move. Next turn, you're going down Señor Stormrage!" (Mask 1700, Illidan 4000)

Showing now signs of worry, Illidan drew, saying "You're wrong! I first summon my Breaker the Magical Warrior (1600/1000) in defense mode!"

A mage with mostly maroon armor and a cape, with gold trim and some blue jewels, appeared onto the field. He had a hood over his head, which covered blue skin. In his hands were a sword and shield, showing he wasn't just a mage, but was also a warrior.

"Since I just summoned Breaker, his effect goes off. He gains one Spell Counter, which raises his attack points by 300 (1600 + 300 1900/1000)."

The blue jewel on the mage's shield began to glow light blue, showing an increase in his power.

Laughing, Curry Mask said "Your mage is of no consequence. Even with his new attack points, he's helpless against my Curry Fiend!"

Smirking, Illidan replied "True, his attack points don't help him since he's in defense mode, but I'm not through! I activate my mage's effect, which allows me to remove his Spell Counter. By doing this, I can now destroy one spell or trap card on the field. And the one I choose is your Curry Pot!"

Standing up, the mage aimed his shield at the large pot on the field. The jewel that was softly glowing blue began glowing brighter as a beam shot from the jewel, striking the large pot. Like a hot knife through butter, the beam shot through the pot, causing it to explode into many pieces.

"Now that your Curry Pot is gone, your monster can't get too much stronger. I'll place a face down card to end." (Mask 1700, Illidan 4000)

Slightly grunting at the loss of his spell card, Curry Mask drew and said "You'll pay for taking out my pot! First, I play the spell card Spell Spice Garam Masala, which allows me to add three new cards to my hand from my deck with the name 'Spice' in it."

Pulling his deck out, Curry Mask looked through it and finally pulled three cards out and replaced his deck in it's slot. "First, I'll switch my Curry Fiend into defense mode."

The large chef monster went to one knee, leaving everyone in the arena raising an eyebrow. Turning all three cards he had just drawn towards Illidan, Curry Mask continued, saying "Next, I play my Spell Spice cards! I play Spell Spice Red Pepper, which raises my monster's attack points by 300 (4400 + 300 4700/4400), but lowers your monster's attack points by 300 (1600 – 300 1300/1000)."

A red glow appeared on the field, strengthening the chef monster on it's knees, while weakening the maroon armor clad mage. "For my next seasoning, I add a pinch of Spell Spice Cinnamon, which switches the modes of both our monsters."

Everyone gasped in shock as both monsters stood up, with each taking an offensive stance. "Finally, to top off the seasonings, I add Spell Spice Caraway! This spice melts away 200 of your life points, while adding 200 points to my score."

Illidan could only watch as a few of his life points were depleted, but remained calm. "_He can nickel and dime me all he likes, but if he attacks, he'll hit a nasty surprise._"

"Of course, since I just added four new 'Spice' cards to my Graveyard, my fiend grows even stronger (4700 + 200 4 5500/4700 + 200 4 5500)!"

The chef monster once again glowed red as it's power increased, but Curry Mask saw Illidan's calm expression. Smirking, he said "You sure are calm Señor Stormrage, but I think it's time I melt that calmness away. I play the last card in my hand, which happens to be the spell card Heavy Storm! All spell and trap cards are now destroyed, so say farewell to whatever you had planned!"

A large set of twisters formed on the field, each raging towards the two face down cards Illidan had. Seeing this, Illidan called out "Not so fast! I reveal the spell card Magical Hats! Thanks to this card, I get to special summon four Hat Tokens (0/0) to the field. I also get to place my mage within one of them, so now you'll have to guess which one my mage is in.

In a puff of smoke, a black top hat with a yellow ring around the base of it, and a question mark on the main part of the hat appeared above the maroon cloaked mage. The hat slowly lowered over him and expanded into four hats and then back to one, and finally back to four.

Growling in frustration, Curry Mask barked back "Still, your other face down card is gone!"

As he spoke these words, the other twister struck Illidan's face down card, which was quickly revealed to be the trap card Magic Cylinder.

Still calm, Illidan smirked, saying "Well, I may have lost my trap card, but you have to guess where my mage is. Feeling lucky?"

Taking a moment to think, Curry Mask called out "Curry Fiend, attack the hat on the far left now with Hot Jambalaya!"

The spoon of the chef glowed red as hot flames came pouring out the top of it. With ease, the chef flung the contents of flaming sauce straight at the far left hat. The hat was struck easily and went up in a flaming puff of smoke. As the smoke cleared, it was obvious that the chef had missed his true target as Illidan calmly stood still with all his life points intact.

Growling at his miss, Curry Mask said "You are lucky this time I missed, but next I won't (5500 – 300 5200/5200) (1300 + 300 1600/1000)!" (Mask 1900, Illidan 3800)

Drawing, Illidan calmly looked at his card and let a small smile grace his face. "I'm far from beaten Curry Mask. I sacrifice my Breaker the Magical Warrior in order to summon Cybernetic Magician (2400/1000)!"

The hats all vanished as the maroon clad mage reappeared. He vanished in a beam of light and was replaced by a mage in white-silver trench coat like robes. He had blonde hair with pale skin, and wore a small pointed hat. In his left hand was a small scepter that was short and had a small hook on it.

Curry Mask only laughed and pointed at Illidan, stating "Your monster is weak! It has no chance against my Curry Fiend!"

Calmly, Illidan took the last card he had in his hand and placed it in his Graveyard slot, while slowly saying "True, but points aren't everything. Since I just discarded my Monster Reincarnation to the Graveyard, my mage's effect kicks in. Now my mage can lower the attack points of one monster on the field to 2000, so say goodbye to Curry Fiend's attack points!"

The chef creature groaned as it began to glow light blue. At the same time, the mage was glowing slightly light blue as well. Soon, the chef creature slumped over a bit, showing it's weakening (2000/5200).

"NO!" cried out Curry Mask in shock.

Pointing towards the chef creature, Illidan calmly said "Attack with Cybernetic Scepter Blast!"

Aiming his small staff at the chef like monster, the mage released a sphere of light blue energy. The blast struck the chef, making it cry out in pain as it exploded into millions of pieces.

"Wow, Professor Stormrage just took down that powerful monster!" an excited Syrus called out in the stands.

Chazz slightly nodded, saying "It was a lucky move."

Staring at Illidan, Bastian said "It wasn't luck. He just calmly waited for a chance to fight back."

"_Impressive. Even though this is my first time watching him duel, I can tell Illidan is quite the strategist. He was easily outmatched against that monster, but he never panicked. That is the sign of a truly strong duelist._" Zane quietly thought.

"Professor Illidan is doing great! If he keeps this up, he'll have this duel in the bag." Jaden said with some excitement in his voice.

Slightly smirking, Illidan said "That does it for me. Looks like I'm not finished yet, don't it?" (Mask 1500, Illidan 3800)

"You bite your tongue!" snarled Curry Mask as he drew. Glancing at his card, he turned it horizontal and said "I play Bean Soldier (1400/1300) in defense mode."

A green bean with two legs with brown boots, and small arms protruding, with one holding a silver sword took the field in a kneeling stance.

"I end my move." (Mask 1500, Illidan 3800)

Glancing at his next card, Illidan said "I move to attack. Cybernetic Magician, take that bean out!"

Pointing his staff at the bean creature, the mage once more released a sphere of light blue energy. The bean cried out in pain as it was smashed easily by the blast and was forced to explode into many pieces.

"Your move." (Mask 1500, Illidan 3800)

Curry Mask lightly chuckled as he drew his next card and examined it. "You're finished Señor Stormrage! I play Monster Reborn, brining back my Curry Fiend (5200/5200)!"

Slowly, the chef creature rose up onto the field once more, letting out a small cry. Seeing the creature rise up, Illidan felt a small bit of sweat roll down his face.

"Curry Fiend, serve up some Hot Jambalaya for that slacker's mage!"

Powering up his spoon with red flames, the chef flung the hot contents straight at the white mage, who held his arms up to shield himself from the heat, but to no avail. Within a second, the mage melted away, sending out a burst of hot flames at Illidan, who shielded himself the best he could from the intense flames.

The blast pushed Illidan backwards, and nearly knocked him to his knees, but he somehow managed to remain standing. Still, he was panting hard, showing that the blast had hit it's mark.

Sneering at the damage, Curry Mask put his hands on his hips and laughed, saying "So much for the mighty Illidan Stormrage. Just one shot of my curry and he's already out of the duel." (Mask 1500, Illidan 1200)

"Oh man, here I thought Professor Illidan was going to win, but now it seems hopeless." commented Syrus.

Still focusing on the battle, Jaden quickly replied with confidence "He's not done yet. Just watch, he'll fight back."

Marie lightly smiled at Jaden's words, but still intently watched the duel. "_I know that had to take a lot of the wind out of your sails Illidan, but stay strong. You can do this, I know it!_"

Finally slowing his breathing, Illidan stood up straight and took one last deep breath. Drawing his card, he heatedly said "I'm not through yet!"

Looking the card over, he slapped it onto his Duel Disk, saying "I place a monster in defense. Next, I throw down one face down card. That's all." (Mask 1500, Illidan 1200)


	17. Chapter 17: Food Fight and Classes Begin

**Hey there everyone! Well, it's the end of the week, meaning I'm almost free! Lol, but it's been a fun week. I've gotten lots done at work, plus yesterday, we had our free day, which wasn't bad. After a good lunch, we came back and did what they call a Yankee Swap. Pretty much, our names were drawn from a hat. We got to pick a gift that was left, or take someone else's gift. Heh, I got the lucky last draw, but I decided to find out what the last mystery gift was. It was a fountain, which was cool, lol. Yes, I know, I'm an odd one. Anyways, no one traded, which spoiled our boss's fun. He wanted to see a free-for-all over the gifts, and no one traded. I almost did take someone's gift, but curiosity got the better of me. The rest of the day, I got to spend time playing Warcraft 3 on There is a pretty sweet game on there called 3****rd**** Shinobi Wars, where you play as a Naruto character. They have the jutsus and all. It's really nice, and the people who designed the level made the characters look pretty close.**

**Last time, the duel raged on with Crowler getting knocked out. Only Illidan and Curry Mask remain, meaning one or the other is going down this round. Will it be the paper mask wearing hero who is victorious, or does Illidan have this one in the bag?**

**Ok, it's time once more, so let's do it! Review time!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Yeah, I had thought about ending it last chapter, but there was stuff to still do, so no dice. Yep, I kept Magical Hats like the show. Correct about the effect. I knew about it, but I was like, eh, that sucks. Thanks for the comments.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Lol, yes, Crowler got a good butt whooping this round. Heh, very true, make sure Crowler doesn't take the loss too hard. Nah, I don't think those are real cards he used. I think they were just nicely made up cards, lol. Cool that you built a deck with Kozazky. Eh, I never liked that card, so I never tried, hehe. Lol, an overpowering hunger for Curry you say? Strange, I'm hungry for something else myself. Too bad I can't have it right now…**

**Isis the Sphinx: Lol, that's cool. Yep, no one likes Crowler, hence he is the weakest link! Goodbye! (/Watches Crowler go away crying.\) Ah, I love my job.**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Lol, nice, you got a healing potion. Just watch your comments. After all, Marie is within an ear shout always. Lol, yes, I bet it is one of the weirdest duels Illidan has been in. Well, other than the one where him and Marie strip for life points. OO Oops, didn't mean to say that one out loud. Not like me and Marie really do that. - - Moving on then…**

**pink-kiss-candy: Thanks. I'm glad it's getting exciting.**

**ardee: You can pay it. After all, you did entice her to break the shield and thoroughly hurt you. Great, you have enough strength to read! I'd guess an angry Marie is scarier… Yes, I never try to get on her bad side. It's not pleasant, and it's usually painful… Yep, that's one strong chef. Yeah, a food deck is original. The GX writers did a good thing with it. Heh, the Egyptian Gods are somewhere… Where, I'm not sure. True, Illidan did have them last. To be truthful, that is explained soon, so no worries. Marie doesn't do "sit boy" on random people. That works on me, but not random people.**

**Alright, that's it for me. I hope you all enjoy this chapter. Thank you all for your reviews. Answering them is so much fun every morning. I hope to continue to see lots and lots of them. Thanks again everyone. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 17**

Chuckling, Curry Mask drew, saying "That pathetic face down card won't slow me down! I play the spell Silent Doom! I can now revive one monster to the field in face up defense, so I bring back Bean Soldier (1400/1300)!"

The green bean warrior reappeared on the field in a kneeling position. "Curry Fiend, fry up whatever his monster is!"

The chef creature flung yet another spoon load of hot material at it's target. The face down card image glowed and a young mage clad in purple armor that covered all of his body but his arms and head. The mage had blonde hair with a red bandana in it, and held a green staff. He appeared in a kneeling position, protecting his master. The flaming material easily destroyed the young mage, vaporizing it in seconds.

Slightly smirking, Illidan said "Thanks for that. You just triggered my mage's special ability. When sent to the Graveyard due to battle, I get to special summon a new level two or lower Spellcaster type monster to the field in face down defense."

Pulling his deck out, he searched for a moment and finally slapped a new card face down onto his Duel Disk, saying "I pick this one."

Seemingly a bit frustrated, Curry Mask huffed out "I end." (Mask 1500, Illidan 1200)

Illidan quickly drew his next card and smiled as he held out in front of his face. Turning it towards Curry Mask, he said "I play Pot of Greed! I get to draw two cards now."

Picking up two more cards, Illidan lightly chuckled, saying "You're through! First, I flip my face down monster up. Meet my Old Vindictive Magician (450/600)!"

An old mage with bronze, wrinkled skin and black hear, wearing bronze armor and robes with a bit of a blue tattered cape and a green staff appeared onto the field. He let out a small dark chuckle, as if foretelling a bad omen.

"There's something I should warn you about my mage. He really dislikes people looking at him. So when he's flip summoned and forced to look at people, his effect goes off. He gets to automatically destroy one monster on the field. I think your Curry Fiend is a perfect target!"

"NO!!!" cried out Curry Mask.

Grinning menacingly at the chef creature, the old mage held out his bronze skinned hand and released a sphere of purple light. The blast struck the chef creature head on, causing it to howl in pain. Slowly, the sphere entered into the chef's body. Once fully engulfed, the stomach of the chef creature glowed brilliantly till finally an explosion ripped completely through, easily destroying the creature.

"My Curry Fiend! You'll rue the day you did that Señor Stormrage!" snarled Curry Mask.

Smirking, Illidan said "I doubt that. Next, I reveal my face down spell card, Magical Dimension!"

A small golden statue, held up with four chains that were anchored to a square metal frame made of pipes that formed a cube around the statue slowly arose.

"Thanks to this card, I can now sacrifice my Old Vindictive Magician. Next, I get to special summon any Spellcaster type monster to the field, of course, pending it's summoning requirements. So now, I summon my Silent Magician LV 4 (1000/1000)!"

The statue's top half opened up and sucked the old mage in using a laser and closed it's doors once more. The entire statue opened the next time with a small white mage with silver hair coming out onto the field.

Pointing at the young mage, Curry Mask heartily laughed, saying "You sacrifice one weak and feeble old mage in order to summon another weak mage! You are incredibly foolish Señor Stormrage!"

Illidan only smirked at the comments, saying "There is another catch to my move. You see, my spell card has one last ability to use up. It can now destroy one monster on your side of the field, so that means your Bean Soldier goes away now!"

Curry Mask immediately stopped laughing as a beam shot out from the statue. The beam easily struck the bean warrior, causing it to explode instantly, and leaving Curry Mask wide open. Sweat instantly appeared rolling down Curry Mask's face from his face, showing signs he was truly worried.

After a moment, he finally regained his composure, saying "True, you may have destroyed my monster, but I've got more life points than that runt has attack points, so I'm still safe!"

Nodding, Illidan replied "True, you're right there, but who said my mage would destroy you? Don't forget, I'm holding one last card in my hand."

Gasping, Curry Mask shakily said "You lie! You can't beat me!"

Grabbing the card from his hand, Illidan boldly said "Wanna bet! I play the spell card Level Up! Thanks to this, I get to sacrifice my mage for his next form, which happens to be Silent Magician LV8 (3500/1000)!"

The small mage glowed brightly for a moment, and then began to grow in height. As the glow died, the smaller mage was seemingly older and stronger looking. His face now showed more adult like looks, and his body matched his new rise in power.

"Impossible!" Curry Mask blurted out in shock.

"Silent Magician, finish this duel with Silent Scepter Blast!"

Aiming his staff, the mage fired a sphere of white energy at Curry Mask, who could do nothing but take it on the chin. The blast threw him backwards to the edge of the ring, where he laid there. Even though it was a powerful blast, the blast somehow managed to keep from knocking off his mask.

As the life points drained away, the monster images faded and the Chancellor rose, saying "The winner of the three-way duel is Professor Stormrage!"

Every one of the Slifer Dorm students rose and heartily applauded their professor. Even Chazz stood up and applauded with a smug look on his face. A majority of the other dorms students stood up and applauded as well.

Walking over to Curry Mask, Illidan extended a hand to him. "Good duel." he kindly said to the masked man.

Smiling as he accepted the hand, Curry Mask slowly stood back up. "Yes, it was a good duel amigo."

Leaning in close so only Curry Mask could hear, Illidan said "Nice disguise by the way Vincent."

Pulling back to look Illidan in the eyes, Curry Mask asked "How long have you known?"

Lightly chuckling, Illidan patted him on the back and replied "Since the beginning of this duel my friend, since the beginning. Don't worry though, I won't blab."

Smiling back, Curry Mask nodded, saying "Thank you."

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The next day, classes officially began. Illidan and Marie got up a few hours earlier, hoping that it would be enough time to make breakfast, as well as get them woke up.

Breakfast went over well for once. Nothing was burnt, and the students didn't grumble at all. Zane volunteered to put the dishes in the washer since his class to teach was much later in the morning.

Illidan's first class of the day started at 9 A.M. He was in good spirits, and hoped that things went well. Walking into the class room, he saw many faces that he knew he'd have to memorize over time.

To start class, he asked everyone in the class to fill out some usual information cards that the academy always had filled out at the beginning of the year. Once that was done, he had everyone stand up and say who they were, and where they came from. After it had finally finished, Illidan decided he should tell them about himself.

"I'm from Kyoto, Japan, and have lived there most of my life. About six years ago, I went to college to study up on Egyptian History. This past May, I finally managed to graduate with a Master's Degree in Egyptian History. Also, in case everyone wonders, I've dueled in many tournaments and won several. Finally, so no one gets confused, my wife is Professor Marie Stormrage, which I'm sure many of you will have sometime today."

The students for the most part nodded, making Illidan smile lightly. Clearing his throat, he said "I guess I should tell everyone what you'll learn here. In this class, we'll begin with the study of Egyptian History, followed up with many other civilizations. I'm a fair teacher, and believe in making sure everyone gets what I'm talking about. I'll try my best to translate in simplest terms."

Thinking for a moment, Illidan continued with "Now, I'll discuss how you all will be graded. There will be a quiz every two weeks on Friday, going over what all we've discussed the previous two weeks. Our first quiz will be in two weeks time, so I suggest you study up. Also, we will have a test every six weeks. On the week of tests, there will not be any quizzes. I'll also be taking up some kind of homework from time to time, but for the most part, I want you all to have some good practice. Finally, if anyone has any problems, questions, or wish to talk, feel free to speak with me after class or come to my office. My door is always open."

Seeing the students take this all in, Illidan nodded and said "Alright, since it's your first day, I'm letting you all out early. So, go enjoy your day. We'll get to work tomorrow."

All the students picked up their stuff and began leaving. A few stayed behind, mostly to talk with one another.

Finally leaving, Illidan walked back to his office and sank into his chair with a heavy sigh. "That was easy enough."

"It gets easier." a voice said, making Illidan fall out of his chair.

Looking over, he saw that it was Chancellor Shepherd, whom was standing in his doorway chuckling at his actions. Catching his breath, Illidan stood up and straightened his uniform, saying "Chancellor, what may I do for you?"

Chuckling, the Chancellor simply waved him off, saying "Nothing really. I just figured I'd come check up on you. So, your first class wasn't too bad?"

Softly smiling, Illidan nodded, replying with "No, it wasn't bad. I'm just getting used to the students."

Nodding back, Chancellor Shepherd kindly said "Don't worry. Over time, you'll come to know each of them, and like me, miss them when they do head out."

"True, I'm sure I will. Till they're gone though, I'll have to treasure that time with them." Illidan replied as he turned to look out the window.

"I shall leave you for now then. By the way, there I'll be making an important announcement later this week. I figured I'd warn you ahead of time this time." Shepherd said as he stood in the doorway, ready to leave.

Turning back, Illidan nodded, saying "Alright. Thank you for the heads up."

As the Chancellor left, Illidan sank into his chair once more, letting out a heavy sigh. "I wonder what kind of announcement he'll make this time."

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The remainder of the day went over well. Both Illidan and Marie got to know their students a little, and enjoyed a wonderful lunch together with the Slifer students.

At the beginning of Marie's last class of the day, Marie sat in the classroom, reading over a few things for the class. The students were slowly filing in, and she was just waiting for a few to finish rushing in so she could begin class.

Down the hall, a large, fat cat with light brown fur with some dark brown stripes on it's legs and on it's back, with one set of stripes on his forehead, and a dark brown strip of fur on the end of his tail was waddling down the hall. Mentally, the cat was singing the song "_Everybody Wants to be a Cat_" as he walked along, somewhat grooving to the song. Even though the cat was singing it, nobody heard the words at all.

Marie heard someone singing out in the hall, but paid no heed to it. She decided it was time to start class. She noted that Chazz and many other Slifer's were in her class. Turning around, she walked up to the chalk board and began writing her name up on the board.

While this happened, the cat came to the doorway where the class was being taught. Looking in, the cat mentally said "_Wow, she's a pretty one._"

Hearing the comment, Marie looked over her shoulder at the students. She saw them still talking, but didn't hear anymore comments. "_Strange…_"

The cat walked into the room, slowly slinking towards Marie. Looking her over, the cat slowly continued marching forward. "_She sure would be a nice girl to have at night._"

"Whoever is making those comments about me had better shut up now!" Marie snapped.

The students immediately stopped talking and looked at her curiously like she had grown a third head.

"No one said anything about you." Winry slowly commented.

Confused, Marie gave an annoyed look and turned back to the board and began writing again. "_I know I heard someone!_"

"_I wonder what color underwear she has on._" came a voice again.

"IF I HEAR ONE MORE COMMENT LIKE THAT, WHOMEVER IT IS THAT IS TALKING ABOUT ME WILL SOON BE EXPELLED FROM MY CLASS!" Marie roared loudly at the students.

All of the students shrank back, except a semi brave Chazz, who dumbly replied with a small bit of anger in his voice "No one said anything about you!"

"_I bet she has a thong on._"

Marie was about to explode when she noticed a cat inching it's way towards her. She noted that it was looking straight at her.

"Who's cat?" she asked gruffly.

"That's Professor Banner's cat, Pharaoh. He wonders around the campus now. He usually smells awful, so no one keeps him anymore." Chazz said with annoyance in his voice.

"_I don't stink! Sure, I eat sardines all day, but I take a bath daily too!_"

Staring straight at the cat, Marie could barely believe what she had just heard. "Class is dismissed. We'll pick up tomorrow."

The students all grumbled and left, leaving Marie and Pharaoh behind. Bending over, she picked Pharaoh up and sat him on her desk.

Turning around, she started erasing the board, when she heard a voice once again.

"_Ah, what a nice view from here._"

Immediately, she turned back around with her jaw dropping. "I know I'm not crazy now. It's you I hear."

Pharaoh looked at her intently, as if he actually understood. Finally, she heard "_Can you actually hear me?_"

Nodding, Marie replied "I can. So, it's you that was making all those perverted comments!"

Finding this new discovery, she picked Pharaoh up by the scruff of his neck and headed out of the room. She quickly hurried to Illidan's office, where he sat at his desk reading something in a folder. As she entered, she shut the door behind her and dropped Pharaoh on Illidan's desk.

Looking up, Illidan raised an eyebrow and asked "Why did you bring me a cat?"

"Illidan, you're not going to believe this. The cat, he talks!" Marie said with exasperation.

Raising his eyebrow once again, Illidan slowly asked "Did you go drinking again? Or did the students put something in your drink?"

Growling in anger, Marie snarled "I'm telling you the truth! I heard this cat talk!"

Illidan could only sweat drop at this, and sarcastically said "Sure he did dear."

"I'll prove it! Say something Pharaoh!" Marie demanded.

Not knowing what to do, Pharaoh meowed. "Wow, I understood exactly what he said! He said 'Meow!'" Illidan said with laughter in his voice.

Marie quickly smacked Illidan in the back of the head for the comment, causing Pharaoh to say "_That had to hurt._"

Still holding his aching head, Illidan stared at Pharaoh more intently now. Finally, Illidan said "I do believe you're right. I just heard him say something. And that voice, it sounded familiar."

Staring at Illidan, Pharaoh finally said "_You look familiar as well. We may have met when I was human._"

Frowning, Illidan replied "So, you were human. Perhaps the reason we can understand you is due to our Shadow Powers. Who were you as a human?"

"_Wait, you have Shadow Powers? I thought only those who had a Shadow Charm could use Shadow Powers._" stated Pharaoh.

Folding his arms, Illidan closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. After a moment, the voice registered in his head.

"You're Professor Banner! Your voice finally came back to me." he exclaimed.

Pharaoh backed up a little, but sat down, saying "_How do you know of me?_"


	18. Chapter 18: Cards and Alchemy

**Hey there everyone! Well, as everyone can see, I've reverted back to my old schedule. Soon I'm going to begin posting three chapters a week, but not quite yet. I still have some things to finish up on this story. I'm nearly done with the ending for this story, but not quite. I have some work to do yet, but it's close. I'd say a few more weeks, hopefully. I know I said that a while back also, but truthfully, I believe I only have a bit more. So, in essence, please be patient with me, lol.**

**Last time, the duel ended with Illidan winning and classes beginning. Everyone's lovable cat, Pharaoh, appeared on the scene with Banner's spirit still in him. He made quite an entrance with Marie, who took him to Illidan. Illidan remembers Banner, but from where and when? And what will Illidan do about Banner's behavior, hehe?**

**Alright, let's do this! (/Cranks up review music.\) Review Time!**

**ardee: Glad they covered it, because, well, you was on your own if you sued me or Marie for it, hehe. Cool about HSM2. True, the food deck of Curry Mask was one of the more creative decks the GX writers made up. LOL! Yes, I would keep that suit of armor on and the guards. That should slow her down for like a minute altogether, more than enough time to duck and cover. Heh, she wouldn't take it as defiance, just as more things for her to hurt. Yeah, the spellcaster deck does work well for Illidan. Heh, a dragon deck would have been cool too, but eh, that would have been more challenging. Lol, thanks on the T rating. Yes, Banner has quite the interesting mind… Good luck on the HSM2.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thank you. It was no prob posting 5 chapters last week. Yeah, it was one more than usual if the two weeks got combined. I had originally planned on posting 3 the week I was on vacation, but due to posting problems, it didn't happen. Heh, my weekend was decent. I saw my grandmother (father's side), and went and helped my dad out on the farm. It wasn't much of a weekend really. Thanks for asking though. How was yours?**

**Isis the Sphinx: LOL! Sorry if I hurt your feelings for turning Banner the way he is. I just changed him to add some action in for him.**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Yep, she found Banner, or Banner found her more like it, lol. True, true, I bet the students thought she was a bit drunk, hehe.**

**Well, that's it for me this morning. I hope you all enjoy this next chapter. It explains a bit about things that happened after Yami left, plus it explains a few other things. I can't wait to see the reviews for this chapter. Enjoy everyone!**

**Chapter 18**

Lightly chuckling, Illidan said "We met back ten years ago, when you were less fury of course."

Thinking back, Illidan began remembering what all had transpired those many years ago.

Yami had left the living realm only three or four months before. Even though the world was at peace, and the Shadow Games were no more, the Shadow Charms still needed hid, with the exception of one that Yami had taken with him.

Seto began construction on an academy that was being built for students to come learn how to duel. The school would be a high school for the most part, and would be only three years long. He named the school Duel Academy, where students would come to learn how to become great duelists, and to hopefully one day enter the newly created Pro Dueling League.

The remainder of the group from the ancient times had moved on with their lives, except for Illidan and Marie. They were busy trying to find places to hide the seven remaining Shadow Charms.

One day, they received a call from Pegasus, asking Illidan to come to visit him, alone. Illidan willingly agreed, though Marie worried about what could happen. He quickly calmed her fears, saying not to worry, that he could handle Pegasus on his own.

Soon enough, Illidan arrived at Industrial Illusions main office building and went to Pegasus's office. Upon entering, Illidan spotted another young man.

The young man had normal rectangular glasses, and long black hair that was mostly tied back in a pony tail. A bit of it hung in the front, but mostly a small amount. He had a less muscular build, but stood proud.

Seeing Illidan enter, Pegasus said "Greetings Illi-boy! I hope you had a good trip."

Seething in his mind at the annoying name, Illidan calmed himself and replied "Yes, I did."

Nodding, Pegasus pointed to the young man, saying "I'd like to introduce to you Professor Banner. Professor Banner, this is the young man I spoke of. This is Illidan Stormrage."

The two shook hands, with Banner smiling, saying "It is nice to finally meet you. I've heard a good deal about you from Mr. Pegasus."

"Thank you, and it's nice to meet you." Illidan replied kindly.

"Professor Banner here is an archeologist who does digs for us in search of more Egyptian Tombs. He has been looking for more monster carvings to help us in creating new cards to release." Pegasus added.

Illidan nodded, so Pegasus continued with "He made an amazing discovery two months ago in Egypt. He found a new tomb that hadn't been opened at all."

Taking his cue to speak on the subject, Banner said "When we discovered the tomb, we thought perhaps it was a burial tomb, but it wasn't. Instead, it was a tomb for storage. In it, we found four large stone carvings."

Raising an eyebrow, Illidan asked "Of what?"

"Three of the carvings depicted three powerful creatures. The last stone was blank though, which I found rather odd." Banner said.

Nodding, Illidan calmly asked "What were the three creatures?"

Sighing, Banner said "When we translated the texts, they were found to be called the Sacred Beasts. They were called Uria, Lord of Searing Flames; Hamon, Lord of Striking Thunder; and finally Raviel, Lord of Phantasms."

Thinking for a moment, Illidan responded "I have never heard of those creatures."

Butting in, Pegasus said "That's what I said exactly when I got word of the discovery."

"Yes, I thought the same thing. Upon closer examination, I realized that they looked similar to the three Egyptian Gods. Their bodies were somewhat different, but they looked similar. It was strange to see the similarities, as well as the differences." Banner said.

Pondering these comments, Illidan slowly said "I guess that they could have been lesser Egyptian Gods maybe, but still, there would have been some record of that."

"That was what I said exactly, but I never found any record. I then translated the hieroglyphs on the wall in the tomb and soon found out that all records on them were destroyed. Plus…" Banner ended with some hesitation.

"Plus?" Illidan urged on.

Sighing heavily, Banner replied "There was a curse. Whoever disturbs the tomb is cursed to death. From what I understand, the curse should kill whoever it is that disturbed the tomb within a few years, if not less."

Calmly, Illidan stated "You're cursed then?"

Nodding, Banner softly replied "Yes, I was cursed. Still, I didn't let that stop me from creating prototype cards for the Sacred Beasts."

"You mean you created three cards for the Sacred Beasts?" Illidan asked, somewhat alarmed.

Straightening his glasses, Banner replied "Correct. I made a set of prototype cards for each. So far, they all work correctly, although we've quickly found out the cards are dangerous. Apparently, they drain energy from what Mr. Pegasus calls Duel Spirits, as well as humans."

"Great…" Illidan said as he closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose.

Taking the moment to step in, Pegasus said "Mr. Banner, can you leave us for a while?"

Nodding, Banner said "Of course."

Bowing out, he left the room, leaving Illidan standing where he was with his eyes still closed. Pegasus crossed the room, looking out the window momentarily.

"I know what you're going to say, so you can save yourself the trouble my young friend." Pegasus was quick to say.

Opening his eyes, Illidan angrily spat out "Wasn't four unstoppable monsters enough for you already!? No, it wasn't, so you had three more creatures that are nearly unstoppable created as well!"

Sighing, Pegasus replied "I told you I knew that you were going to say that. You don't have to snap at me! I was as surprised as you that Banner had the cards created."

Slightly remorseful for snapping, Illidan took a deep breath and asked "You didn't know he created the cards?"

Shaking his head in a no fashion, Pegasus replied "I had no idea that Banner was going to make the cards. He had called me while I was away on business. The line was fuzzy, but I heard something about he made a discovery, and wished to proceed. I could barely hear him, so I thought he had just found some random weaker monsters. I used poor judgment, but as I said, I thought it was weak monsters."

Sighing deeply, Pegasus continued, saying "When I returned, I came to find out that Banner had created the cards, supposedly on my authorization. He had three prototypes already created, and we both found out immediately the destructive capabilities of the three Sacred Beasts. Unlike the Egyptian God Cards, whom rely on their own ancient power, these creatures feed off of the energy of Duel Spirits and humans."

Taking in all this information, Illidan calmly asked "They could end the world then?"

Nodding, Pegasus replied "They have the power to absorb all the energies from each and every card on Earth, along with all of the energy of duelists too."

Turning to look out the window himself, Illidan sighed deeply, and said "Cards like those are too dangerous to ever use."

"Correct. That's why I asked you here. I talked to Kaiba-boy, and he has agreed to place the cards in a secret location at Duel Academy. The only thing is he needs someone who knows what they're doing to seal the cards away in the location." Pegasus said calmly.

"Also, the two of us were discussing about what to do about the four Egyptian God Cards, and we figured we'd pitch an idea to you about placing them on the island as well."

Sighing deeply, Illidan replied "That would be a bit dangerous, wouldn't it? I mean, placing seven cards on the same island isn't a very good idea."

Lightly chuckling, Pegasus turned towards him, saying "That's why we wish for you to design some kind of seals for them. Me and Seto know you are the expert on sealing things."

Chuckling at the comment, Illidan replied "True, I've always had a knack for sealing things away so that they can't be tampered with. Still, it will take some time for me to work on seven seals…"

"Five seals." Pegasus cut in.

Looking at Pegasus, Illidan slowly asked "Why five? Each one should be separate!"

"True, but the Sacred Beast Cards aren't as dangerous. Their strength is far weaker than the Egyptian God Cards, so grouping the three together wouldn't be too bad." Pegasus added.

Sighing heavily once again, Illidan pinched the bridge of his nose. After a few moments of thinking, he said "I guess I could seal the three together, but I'll have to make some kind of seal. I have one in mind, but I'll have to work it out. As for the Egyptian God Cards, they'll have to be heavily sealed, and also be left under guard. I think I can leave some Duel Spirits up to that job."

Slightly confused, Pegasus asked "Duel Spirits? Why leave them in charge?"

"Because they are excellent guardians, not to mention they'll last forever, whereas a human will last for so long. I hate to use Duel Spirits that way, but it would be easier than placing a person there."

Finally nodding, Pegasus replied "Alright. How long do you think it will take you to devise the seals?"

Thinking for a moment, Illidan responded "Possibly a few weeks, if not at most a month."

Nodding, Pegasus said "Good. Seto wants to take care of things as quick as possible."

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Coming out of his thoughts, Illidan looked down at Pharaoh and asked "I take it this is what the curse was?"

Staring back at Illidan, Pharaoh said "_Not entirely. You see, after that meeting, I began working on a way to break the curse, but found no way other than one. The only way the curse could be broken was if I possessed all three Sacred Beasts, plus the energy that was needed to wield them._"

"_Of course, there was a time restriction, so I knew there was no way I could gain control of the Sacred Beasts. Not to mention, you had taken the cards and sealed them away. So, I did the only thing I knew I could do in order to survive._"

The voice took a deep breath, and finally said "_Using alchemy, I created a homunculus body, in which I placed my spirit within. I then preserved my body, hoping one day to return to it._"

"_I was eventually approached by the school superintendent about breaking the curse. He told me if I joined his Shadow Riders, he could guarantee that the curse would be broken. Knowing the world would be in danger, I joined, hoping to find a student or someone strong enough to stop him._"

"_Eventually I did find one person who had the strength to stop the madness. Jaden Yuki had the strength and compassion to defeat the darkness. I dueled him myself, hoping to help push his skills beyond what they were. I was successful, and he proved he had what it takes to beat the leader of the Shadow Riders._"

Taking a moment to pause, the voice then continued with "_When I lost, I expected to die, but my cat, Pharaoh, had other plans. My homunculus body disintegrated at the end of our duel, along with my living body. Only my soul survived the process. I was fully prepared to journey into the afterlife, when Pharaoh made plans otherwise. Before I could cross over, he swallowed my soul._"

"That explains things a little bit." Illidan said with a nod.

"_Over time, I gained control of Pharaoh's body. I guess you could say we're sharing the same body and mind, although due to my intelligence, I have a bit more control over my actions._"

"By the way, try a trick like earlier again and you'll be wishing for death!" snarled Marie.

Looking confused, Illidan asked "What trick?"

Seeing that Marie was about to spill it, Pharaoh turned to leave, but saw the door was shut. The only exit left was the window, but it was closed. Deciding to take his chances, he jumped down off the desk and scurried to find a hiding place. Luckily for him, Marie and Illidan were distracted with one another and didn't see him leave the table.

"That pervert tried to look up my skirt is what I'm talking about!" Marie yelled.

Turning to glare at Pharaoh, Illidan noticed that he was missing. His attention had been grabbed by Marie, so he had lost track of the cat. Noting the door was shut, as well as all other exits, Illidan began to scan the room. He easily found Pharaoh cowering under his desk.

Grabbing Pharaoh at the scruff of the neck, Illidan pulled him up in front of himself and with a restrained voice, Illidan said "You'd better behave. Try a trick like that again and you'll find yourself in hot water with me. Got that Banner?!"

A small nod came from Pharaoh, and Illidan placed him back on the desk. Sighing, Illidan calmly asked "Where are you staying currently?"

"_Mostly wherever I can on the campus, but mostly around the Slifer Dorm. There the students that were here last year know my cat, so people feed me._"

Sighing once more, knowing he was going to regret what he was about to say, Illidan said "You could stay with us if you want."

Marie looked at Illidan in shock, knowing what he had just said. "NO WAY IS PERVERT CAT STAYING WITH US!"

Taking her hand, he gently squeezed it, saying "Marie, calm down. Banner has been through a lot, and I think it's only fair to help him out. There isn't a way currently to get him a body, so we should be nice and try to help him out. I know if I was a cat, I'd want some help, as in food and a home."

With a defeated sigh, Marie nodded, mumbling "You can come live with us if you want."

Looking up though with a glare that could kill, Marie coldly added "But if try sneaking a peak at me, so help me, there will be a scavenger hunt to hunt down all the pieces of your body."

Gulping, Banner replied "_Understood… And yes, I accept your generous offer. I shall be on my best behavior._"

"Good." Marie simply stated with ice in her words.

Seeing that things were still a bit rough, Illidan calmly said "It's settled then. By the way Banner, there is a spare room in our home, so you can live in there."

"_Thank you._"

Closing the folder up that he had been reading through, Illidan asked "Are you done with your classes for the day Marie?"

She nodded in reply. "Good then. I am too, so let's go back to the house."

Picking Pharaoh up, Illidan headed for the door. He heard in a mere whisper coming from Banner "_I wish Marie had carried me._"


	19. Chapter 19: Dorm Wars

**Hey there once again everyone! My week has been decent so far. Since Monday, I've been helping my dad out on the farm, which hasn't been too bad. We've been cutting our hay, which is nearly done now. We're finishing up my Grandmother's farm and about to move over to my father's place to wrap up for the year. Eh, I can't wait till we're done in a lot of ways, lol. It's not hard work, but it separates me from my mate in the evenings she's off, which I hate, and she hates even more I think, lol. Next week we'll be done, so I guess we can each hold on till then.**

**Last time, Banner, who is inside of Pharaoh, was discovered. Illidan explained where the Sacred Beast Cards came from, plus told that he sealed them along with the Egyptian God Cards on Duel Academy Island. The cards remain hidden, except for the Sacred Beasts, which were found the previous year. Now that those facts are known, what will happen next? And the major question is, can Illidan and Marie keep from killing Banner if he does anything perverted again?**

**Alright, it's time once more! That's right, it's review time! Let's do it!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Yeah, I thought I'd throw in the origins of the Sacred Beast Cards since they were never really explained in the show. Heh, yes, Banner is a bit different in my story than the show. Eh, it adds a little flare to him, lol. Cool that you tried to get everything ready for school. I remember I used to just randomly pick up things and get them ready like a day before, lol.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Lol, pervert infestation. Nice word choice. Uh… Don't tempt her to use that. She can use any item as a weapon already. She don't need a good weapon at that, lol.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Very true, it's a side of Banner no one saw in the show. I kind of just added it, lol. Lol, true, I'm having a lot of fun with the plot holes the show left to fill in. Thanks for your comments. Heh, I thought about adding those cards, but I figured I better not. I stuck with my original duel I wrote up instead. Thanks about my idea on the creation of the Sacred Beast Cards. The show just never said how they got created, so I made up my own version. Heh, the fourth blank slab, yes, that's very interesting. One could only wonder what was contained within it. Yep, there will be more on that slab later on. Thanks again for your comments.**

**ardee: In terms, currently, with Yami gone, Illidan is strongest person left with Shadow Powers. The others, Marie, Seto, etc, that I made mention of in my one-shot prior to this story, got nearly equal amounts of Shadow Powers. They're a bit weaker than Illidan, but not too much I suppose. As for in the past, Yami was stronger in the end. When Illidan returned from training back in ancient times, when he was sixteen that is, he was far stronger than Yami, but Yami trained on while Illidan trained Marie. Hence, Yami got to face tougher foes and kept getting stronger while Illidan didn't increase that much. Before his death, Yami was a bit stronger than Illidan, but not by much. Seto/Set were nearly as strong as Illidan, but not quite. As for Marie, she was pretty strong, but without her hidden powers, she was somewhat weaker than the others. With her hidden powers, she could clobber all of the others easily. I hope that helps explain that.**

**Now, for your other review. Thanks, I know, the ending was a cute one, lol. Heh, true, you'd think Banner would have learned his lesson and not want to be carried by Marie, but the man can't help it I suppose, lol. Hehe, it cost 4 grand you say for your injuries? Just be glad you don't have to live through that kind of pain all the time… (/Hears a feral growl coming from Marie. Nervously laughs.\) Now, now Marie, I didn't mean that. I mean it's wonderful to live with such a wonderful half demon like yourself. (/She just smirks.\) Yes, she's a half cat demon. I thought about not following the Sacred Beasts name, but eh, I figured I'd explain why they have that name later on. Their new name was given by someone who had them long ago, but their old name stuck instead. Yes, the God Cards are buried on the island also. Hmm, I don't know about Illidan using the God Cards against the Beast Cards, but anything is possible, hehe. True, it would be nice to see a duel like that in the anime, but it'll never happen. As for the villain, we'll see. Could be, or might not be. I know, nice mysterious answer, lol.**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Yep, that's how the Sacred Beasts and the Egyptian Gods got to the island. Lol, yes, definitely a cat flambeau if Banner isn't careful.**

**Alright, that's it for me this week. Hopefully, if all goes well, by the end of next week, I'll be able to wrap this story's ending up and be able to begin posting 3 chapters a week. Once I do, I have a handful of fan fics I wish to write on, like 3 or 4, then I have my Inuyasha story, **_**Another**_**, to work on. Sheesh, I'm going to be so busy, lol.**

**At any rate, I hope you guys have a good weekend. I look forward to reading the reviews. Till next time, enjoy everyone!**

**Chapter 19**

The remainder of the day was uneventful, with Banner behaving himself quite well. Illidan and Marie had no trouble at all that night also.

The next day, classes slowly passed. Illidan taught his class as scheduled, as did Marie. That afternoon, the two met together, preparing for their joint class.

Students soon filled the small room, and class was ready to begin. Both Illidan and Marie smiled at the turn out. There was a mixture of first, second, and third year students, as well as a mixture of dorms.

"Welcome to Tag Team Dueling class. We need everyone to fill out some information cards to begin with." Illidan announced.

Once the cards were collected, he said "Thank you for filling those out. So, to begin with, can anyone tell me about tag team dueling?"

Mariah instantly raised her arm, along with a few other students. Illidan noted that one Ra student, a second year one at that had raised his hand as quickly as Mariah. The student had black hair that was well kept up and had silver eyes. His pale yellow blazer covered a green undershirt.

"Jaden, how about you? Can you explain what tag team dueling is?" Marie asked softly.

Thinking for a moment, Jaden replied "That's an easy one. Tag team dueling is where four people duel, with two on two action. You can help your partner through spell, trap, and monsters. Basically, you can sacrifice your partner's monster for your own creatures. Also, each team has 8,000 life points to start with. That way both team members are eliminated at once."

Smiling, Illidan nodded, saying "Correct Jaden. That is the basis of tag team dueling. Also, in order to win duels, you and your teammate must work together. The most famous tag team that I know of that had their differences, but pulled it together in duels was Yugi Moto and Seto Kaiba. They were sworn enemies in singles action, but when put on a team together, the two worked together rather well."

The group all nodded, and Illidan continued with "During the next two weeks, we're going to begin with the basics. After two weeks, we'll start pairing up teams. By the way, we are the ones who will select your teammates."

Turning to Marie, he asked "Marie, do you have anything else?"

Clearing her throat, she said "Tag team dueling is really fun, but as Illidan said, you and your partner have to find some way to get along through the duel. I've seen teams that meshed together really well, and other teams that blew up in the middle of a duel."

"Also, I should tell you all, in a month, we'll begin a tag team tournament. In it, the newly created tag teams will compete. Since there are thirty-two of you in this class, there will be sixteen teams competing, meaning there will be five rounds…"

"Five?" voiced a few students.

Smiling, Marie replied "Yes, five. There will be four rounds where each of you will compete with your peers. The fifth and final round will be against former Pro League Tag Team Champions."

Everyone seemed to gasp, as Jaden excitedly said "Alright! Now that's what I call a prize!"

Lightly chuckling, Illidan said "Actually Jaden, there is a real prize. Defeat the former champs and the team not only gets a high grade, but also they are exempt from the remainder of the class, if they so choose."

"Sounds like a good prize. I hope some slacker of a partner don't slow me down." Chazz commented.

Smirking at Chazz's remark, Marie said "Of course, there is a something for you all to remember. The cohesion of the team and overall performance is what counts mostly for your grade. It doesn't matter if you win or lose, it's just how well you and your teammate did as a team. Although, the more wins you have, the better it will look on your final grade, but theoretically, a team that lost the first round could have the same grade as a team who lost in the third round."

All of the students nodded, causing both Illidan and Marie to smile. "That's all I have for now. Illidan, do you have anything else to add?"

Looking over at Marie, Illidan turned back to the crowd and said "My advice to all of you when you're paired up, try and get along with your teammate. Cohesion and teamwork is the only way to win a tag duel. Not one person alone can win a tag duel. Both have to work together in order to win."

Taking a moment to pause, Illidan then added "That is all I have as well. Any questions?"

No one raised their hands or asked a question, so Illidan said "Alright, then we're finished for today. We'll start Thursday on the basics. Later."

The students slowly left the room, leaving only Illidan and Marie. "That went rather well, don't you think?"

Smiling at Marie, Illidan nodded, saying "Yeah, it did. I think it'll be interesting to see how things turn out."

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That afternoon, a meeting was called for all the headmasters and student teachers. All of the staff sat around a large table, softly talking to one another. The Chancellor finally walked in, causing the room to quiet down.

Taking his seat, the Chancellor said "Thank you for coming here today. I know each of you have busy schedules, but I thought we should discuss something that I have planned."

All nodded, and the Chancellor continued with "This year, our sponsor has asked us to hold a new event. It consists of pitting all of the dorms against one another."

Part of the headmasters gasped, while a few smugly looked on. Breaking the silence, Crowler squawked arrogantly "There is really no need to have the event Chancellor. After all, my Obelisk Blue's would trounce both the Red and Yellow dorms."

"If you're so confident, then why not hold the event?" Illidan quickly retorted.

Bristling up, Crowler loudly yelled "The Blue Dorm can annihilate the Red Dorm any day of the week, including the Yellow Dorm!"

Lightly chuckling, Illidan smugly replied "Just like how you annihilated me and Curry Mask Sunday night?"

Growling loudly, Crowler prepared to say something, when the Chancellor interrupted with "Enough! Dr. Crowler, you should know by now it doesn't matter what color your jacket is. Experience from last year shows us that colors and rankings aren't everything."

"Humph…" was all that came out of Crowler as he folded his arms and looked away.

Turning to Illidan, Chancellor Shepherd said "And as for you, you are semi right about all the students deserve a chance to prove themselves. I think all of us saw this past weekend that leadership roles are important in spurring on our students."

Calming down, Shepherd added "Now then, I shall explain the rules. They are mostly simple. The students will constantly throughout the year compete in small tournaments, along with other events, in order to gain points. Each time a student defeats a rival dorm member, the student's dorm will receive five points."

Taking a sip of water that was on the table, the Chancellor stopped and finally put down his cup, continuing with "Of course, there are penalties as well. Each time students are in trouble, pending on the severity of the crime, points will be deducted. An example would be if they snuck out past curfew and were caught. The punishment would be a deduction of at least five points, if not ten or more."

All nodded, causing Shepherd to say "At the end of the year, the points will be racked up. Students who did exceptionally this year will be rewarded by me personally. The amount of points I will give out is solely based on what the student did. Once the points are counted, the winner will be announced and proclaimed the best dorm on Duel Academy Island!"

"Also, I should tell you all, the dorm that does win, will be rewarded. The students and headmasters, along with the student teachers, will be sent on a vacation to the Bahamas for two weeks."

Everyone's eyes grew sparkly at the mention of a vacation. Seeing the happy faces, Shepherd said "Oh yeah, one more thing. There will also be teacher competitions during the year also."

Everybody snapped out of their daze to look at the Chancellor. Crowler quickly squawked "What kind of competitions?!"

Lightly chuckling, Chancellor Shepherd replied "A series of duels and tournaments. I am setting up two random duels on Saturday and Sunday."

"So, it could be anyone against anyone?" Marie softly asked.

Nodding, Shepherd quickly replied "Yes. It could be a Slifer Red vs. Slifer Red, or even Obelisk Blue vs. Obelisk Blue. In any case, it will be random, and should help the students really get motivated for this year's event."

Taking a moment, Shepherd smiled, saying "Ah yes, one last thing. There will be a teacher's tournament held during the fall. It will be each and every teacher going head to head. I will name the sixteen teachers to compete later, most likely around the time the competition will begin."

"This will be a cinch!" Bonaparte boldly boasted.

With a half smile, Marie silently commented "I wouldn't count on it."

After a few moments of noticing the happy and excited faces, Chancellor Shepherd said "I will make the official announcement of the event tomorrow night."

Standing, Shepherd added "I look forward to this year long event. I think it will truly prove the worth of the students in each dorm. That is all, and I'll say this as you leave. May the best dorm win!"

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"Do you think the students will be more motivated to succeed with this year long event?" Zane asked aloud, breaking the silence that had descended on the three Slifer teachers as they headed back for the dorm.

Taking a moment to answer, Illidan finally replied "I do think it will help motivate them some. I know a few that will be more than likely extremely excited, and want to take this year long event to the maximum. But I have a feeling some will still not be completely convinced that our dorm can win."

"Yeah, and those who are unconvinced will be the ones who may bring the dorm down in the contest." Marie added with a deep sigh.

Both Illidan and Zane nodded and sighed themselves, causing the entire group to stop and look down. Looking up to the sky, Illidan smiled, saying "Still, I think that the Slifer Dorm has as good a chance as anyone else. All we have to do is encourage them and help them believe that there is a chance that we can win."

Smiling up at Illidan, Zane replied "Well put Illidan."

Lightly hugging Illidan, Marie added "So true."

Turning loose, Illidan looked back at the two and said "Together, we'll lead the Slifer Dorm to victory. I know it. We just have to stay together and believe in our students."

Putting his hand out, Illidan asked "Are you both with me?"

Smiling, Marie placed her hand on top of Illidan's, saying "I'll always be with you. I know we can do this!"

Zane gave a small smile, saying "I am with you both. The three of us can lead this dorm and show that it's not full of slackers!"

Lightly chuckling, Illidan said "Then it's agreed. We will lead this dorm forward, and show that it has something to prove. Win or lose, we'll do the best we can!"

The three pulled back their hands and turned back towards the path. Together, the three headed back to the Slifer Dorm, each feeling confident that they could empower their students to win the year long event.

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The remainder of the week quickly flew by. Chancellor Shepherd made his announcement as promised on Wednesday night.

All of the students were shocked and excited by it, with Jaden yelling out loud "LET'S GET OUR GAME ON SLIFER DORM!"

After the announcements, things continued on normal for the rest of the week. Pharaoh, whom was Banner actually, behaved well around Marie. He also wondered around the dorms like in the previous years, and the students that knew him welcomed him.

Classes had gone over well also, making the week fly by much quicker than many figured. Illidan and Marie had been proud of making it through the week, and that their students did seem quite up to the challenge of passing their classes, they hoped.

As the three had anticipated, the Slifer students were a bit unsure of how they would do in the year long event, known as the Dorm Cup. Many were wishy-washy about their chances, but Illidan, Marie, and even Zane reassured the students that they could win.

Jaden of course jumped on the bandwagon, declaring immediately that the dorm could win. Chazz only scoffed at the event. Syrus was worried that he'd mess everything up. Roxas had only shrugged it off. Mariah had taken it with enthusiasm that rivaled Jaden's. Ed and Al smirked, each saying they'd make the dorm proud, while Winry commented that they'd more than likely do something to make the Slifer's reputation even worse.

Many of the comments from the students were mixed, but when it was all shaken out, a majority thought the dorm stood a small chance at winning. That fact in itself helped some of the Slifer students settle down.

As the sky was darkening on Saturday evening, both Illidan and Marie were in their house preparing for the duel that night. The duel would be picked at random, so everyone was prepared to duel, just in case.

"I hope it's not me and you going at it." Marie complained loudly as she was looking over her deck.

Without even looking up from his own cards, Illidan replied "It'd be a good duel though."

Stopping, Marie placed her deck on the desk and stood up, stretching and letting off a loud sigh. Turning to Illidan, she said in a whiny voice "But I don't want to fight you again."

Lightly chuckling as he placed his deck back in it's holder, Illidan replied kindly "I know, but if we have to face one another, we have to face one another. At least this time it would be for fun, unlike two other times."

Sadly smiling, Marie walked over and placed a hand on the side of his face, causing him to stop his preparation. Standing up, Illidan looked deep into Marie's chocolate orbs, knowing she felt the same about their past.

"What happened has happened, and it only made us stronger. Don't worry Marie, I never worry about facing you because deep down, I know you'll always know I love you." he kindly said.

Smiling slightly, she leaned into his chest, saying dejectedly "Still, I don't want to face you. I want someone I can beat."

Heartily laughing, Illidan pulled her back, saying "I wouldn't doubt you couldn't beat me. You have before, and I know you could again if it was to happen."

"I guess." she mumbled in reply.

Kissing Marie on the forehead, Illidan said "Now, go on and finish up. It's nearly time to see who will duel. Most likely, it won't be either of us."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

All of the students sat in the auditorium awaiting the duel for the night. Most were excited to see the teachers duel, hoping to see what they could really do.

Sitting with his friends as usual, Jaden waited impatiently for the random draw to begin. "Can't they hurry this up?!" he whined.

Syrus only sighed for the millionth time, saying "Jaden, it'll happen soon."

"Buck up soldier. It won't be long!" replied another boy beside of Syrus. He had six black dread locks of hair sticking out to the side, a yellow bandana that turned brown towards the very front, which had a set of red eyes and a pair of nostrils, and finally some dinosaur like teeth hanging from the rim. The young man was muscular, having well formed biceps. The sleeves of his Ra Yellow jacket were cut off, and he had a large tooth necklace around his neck. His pants were brown, and his undershirt was green. His voice sounded mostly like an army instructors.

"Hasselberry is right Jaden, for once. It won't be much longer." a girl added from behind Jaden. She had mid-back length sandy blonde hair, light brown eyes. She wore an Obelisk Blue uniform that was standard for girls, which consisted of a blouse and skirt.

"Alexis is right Jaden. We can't have you getting bent out of shape just waiting for a duel." another student commented. He had light black hair that wasn't even neck length, silver eyes, and wore a Ra Yellow jacket. His undershirt was green, and pants were black. His voice had a bit of a British accent in it as well.

Sighing once more, Jaden replied "I know Bastion, but it's hard to wait."

The whole group lightly chuckled at their friend's predicament, but each were a bit excited as well.

On the stage, all of the teachers stood with Duel Disks ready. The announcement to who would duel was moments away, and the students, along with all the teachers, were growing restless.

"I'm glad to see everyone here tonight." announced Chancellor Shepherd as he took the stage.

The entire crowd, along with the teachers, turned their complete attention onto him. Smiling, he said "Welcome to tonight's festivities. I'm sure everyone, much like me, are excited about who could be dueling tonight. Well, without any further ado, I think it's time to get this duel on the road."

Pointing to the screen that was behind the field, Shepherd said "This duel will be done by random drawing. Watch carefully, because you never know who may duel."

Snapping his fingers, he bellowed "Begin the selection!"

The screen blinked to life as three spaces appeared on it. The middle space had the word "Vs." The top and bottom spaces had names that were randomly coming up. After a minute, the random names stopped, and two names were displayed.

The crowd lightly gasped, as did the teachers. Smiling, Chancellor Shepherd said "The two duelists have been picked. It will be Professor Izumi Triune vs. Professor Marie Stormrage!"

Both Izumi and Marie stepped out of the crowd to the front of the Chancellor. Each smiled, with the Chancellor saying "Alright, the rest of the teachers may now leave the dueling platform!"

Before leaving the platform, Illidan gave Marie a small peck on the check, saying "Good luck."

She simply replied "Thanks."

Everyone was soon off the stage, with exception of the Chancellor, Izumi, and Marie. Seeing they were finally left alone, Shepherd said "Now you two, you know the rules. Izumi, since you were picked first, you have choice of who goes."

Without thinking, Izumi said "Marie may go."

"Very well, Marie you will be first. You may begin whenever you're ready!" the Chancellor stated as he left the stage.

Both activated their Duel Disks simultaneously, each saying "Game on!"


	20. Chapter 20: Catfight, Pt 1

**Hey guys. Sorry if I don't seem too energetic like always. Eh, it's been a rough weekend since last week. (/Heavily sighs.\) I was going to discuss it, but I think I'll pass. I'll just move onto the reviews.**

**Last time, Illidan and Marie's tag team class began, with them explaining things and promising a prize to the winners of their tag team tournament. Plus, the Dorm Wars were set in motion. Finally, two random duels are due that weekend, with Marie already being matched up to the female headmaster of the Ra Dorm, Izumi. Can Marie overcome this headmaster, or will she be overwhelmed instead?**

**Ah yes, quick question. Can anyone guess where I got the idea for the Dorm Wars? Heh, it's not hard if you read much or watch the movies instead. If anyone figures it out, post it in your review and I'll post an extra chapter tomorrow in your name.**

**Ok, time for reviews.**

**Very Swampeh: Lol, I understand what you mean. Crazy school, hehe. Yep, Ed and Al are here for this story. Eh, as for lots of dueling for the Dorm Wars, yes and no. Thanks. I'm glad you liked the three way duel. Glad you liked the twist. It was something that hit me when the show never talked about his past, so I thought what the hell, why not make him Illidan and Marie's descendant. This duel should be fun, and yes, hehe, fun tempers, lol.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Heh, true, catfight! Lol, yes, a terrific opportunity to prove her dueling skills also. It should be an entertaining thing for the year round event. Yeah, I added a few branches to the story so to keep things going. I guess I kind of in a way copied the first season's methods somewhat. Yes, you never know what I have up my sleeves. (/Shakes out a rabbit.\) How did he get there?**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Yep, a dorm cup, lol.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Very true, I added a new side to Banner that no one knew of, lol. Nah, I actually looked up Shepherd's name, and it came out the way I'm spelling it. I thought it was different too, but all the stuff I've found has shown it the way I spell it. Go figure, eh?**

**ardee: It does a bit I suppose remind me of ToP also. Yeah, this duel should be fun. Heh, I just know not to anger a certain half cat demon. That and offer her tuna, and that usually keeps me safe, except from her cat breath. (/Waves away funky tuna smell.\) Heh, I had to think about the deck she used myself, but I finally came up with something. It'll look familiar, lol.**

**Well, there you are guys. Thanks for the first 100 reviews btw. I'm glad everyone has liked my latest addition to the Illidan and Marie series. I think the further along it gets, the more everyone will like it also. There is an actual plot, so stay patient, hehe.**

**Alright, till next time guys. Hopefully I'll be more up to this then, or maybe I'll just tell you all what's bumming me out. Later.**

**Chapter 20**

"This should be fun." Izumi commented cheerfully as she drew five cards.

Smiling back, Marie replied "I totally agree. Good luck to you."

Drawing her sixth card, Marie said "I summon The Forgiving Maiden (850/2000) in defense."

A woman dressed in a black dress with her hands pressed together in a praying position materialized onto the field.

"Next, I'll place this card face down. That's all for now." (Marie 8000, Izumi 8000)

Smirking, Izumi said as she drew "That's all, too bad. I play the spell card Polymerization, which fuses my Steamroid (1800/1800) and Gyroid (1000/1000) from my hand to create the Steam Gyroid (2200/1600)!"

A black and red steam powered train with a cartoon like face and a blue and pale white helicopter with a face both appeared on the field. The two soon began swirling together, causing a blinding light to form. When it died down, a locomotive with a large set of helicopter blades sticking through it's midsection was left. The train had a smile on it's face and steam coming from it's smoke stack.

"She played Vehicroids!" Syrus said in shock from the stands.

Looking carefully, Jaden nodded, saying "She sure did! Wow Sy, someone else plays the same kind of deck as you do!"

"Although, she apparently knows what she's doing, unlike Syrus." Chazz darkly added.

Glaring at Chazz quickly, Zane returned his attention back to Syrus, saying "Watch her little brother. You may pick up a few things."

Syus solemnly nodded, and returned his attention to the duel. Illidan though smiled, pondering how Marie would fare against the odd machines.

"_I know she'll do alright. She just has to keep fighting, like she always has._"

On the field, Izumi smiled, saying "I'm not through yet, for now I summon Submarineroid (800/1800)!"

A blue and yellow submarine that had a face and had small arms holding onto a torpedo appeared beside the fused creature.

"Let's do it guys! Go attack that old maid with Cyclone Locomotion my Steam Gyroid!"

Letting out a train whistle, the fused creature raced towards the older woman with helicopter blades spinning wildly.

Unafraid, Marie calmly said "Not happening! I reveal my trap card, Castle Walls! Thanks to this, I can raise the defense points of one monster by 500 for the duration of this turn, so I choose my Forgiving Maiden (850/2000 + 500 2500), meaning you're not coming through!"

The woman in black glowed lightly in a dim white light. Once the glow was gone, she caused a barrier to surround her body just as the powerful machine was trying to strike her. The machine's blades grinded against the barrier, but finally the train creature backed up to it's original position.

"Not bad. Not bad at all, but I'm far from done! Submarineroid, attack with Submersible Sneak Attack!" Izumi ordered.

"That is kind of foolish. Your machine can't hurt my monster." Marie stated.

Lightly chuckling, Izumi was quick to reply with "True, but it has a special ability. It can direct attack you instead!"

The submarine dove into the stage, vanishing in an instant. A moment later, it's periscope came up from the stage as it steamed towards Marie. Movement was made as something came flying towards Marie. She was then struck, causing her to "eep" in surprise as a blast struck her.

"Since Submarineroid successfully attacked you, it now goes to defense mode."

The blue submarine remerged from the ground beside the train creature, revealing that it no longer had a torpedo in it's hands. It then crossed it's arms, causing a holo-card image to appear under it.

"To end my move, I'll leave this face down." (Marie 7200, Izumi 8000)

Picking up a new card, Marie smirked, saying "Time for me to take that scrap heap down! I play Polymerization, fusing The Forgiving Maiden on the field with Marie the Fallen One (1700/1200) in my hand to create St. Joan (2800/2000)!"

An angel with black skin and wings, along with a pink dress, appeared onto the field. Her and the woman in black began to swirl together till a blinding light formed. From it appeared a short orange haired woman wearing white armor and had a large broad sword in her two hands.

Pointing at the train creature, Marie called out "Joan, attack Steam Gyroid with Saint Slash!"

Lifting her sword, the woman charged forward, blade ready to slash through her foe. As she charged, she let out a small battle cry.

"You didn't think it'd be that easy, did you Marie?" Izumi taunted.

Pointing at her face down card, it lifted up, revealing a spell card. "I'm using De-Fusion, which can separate one Fusion type monster. Now, which will it be?"

Marie lightly growled in irritation, knowing her monster was in danger. "_I should have known she'd play that._"

"I choose my Steam Gyroid to split apart! Return to me Steamroid (1800/1800) and Gyroid (1000/1000)!" declared Izumi, shocking Marie and the crowd.

The locomotive creature with a helicopter blade sticking through it split into two. A steam locomotive and a small helicopter were left on the field in defensive stances.

"_Strange… Why didn't she separate Marie's monster?_" Illidan thought silently to himself.

Smirking, Izumi said "Since you have no target anymore, your attack is stopped."

The armored woman quickly stopped her advance and leapt back to the safety of Marie's field. She seemed to look for what to do now.

Sighing, Marie took another card from her left hand and placed it in her Duel Disk spell/trap zone, saying "I place this down." (Marie 7200, Izumi 8000)

Drawing with a smirk, Izumi showed her card, saying "I play the spell Pot of Greed! So that's two more cards for me!"

A large green pot with blue trim, an evil smile and red eyes appeared onto the field and let out a small laugh. It instantly shattered as Izumi drew her new cards.

"Next, I'll play the spell Graceful Charity! Thanks to this, I get to draw three new cards, but I have to discard two from my hand when I'm done."

Picking up three more cards, Izumi slightly squealed with enthusiasm as she picked up two cards and dumped them into her Graveyard slot. Pulling a third card, she slapped it to the Duel Disk, saying "I summon Expressroid (400/1600)!"

A white subway train appeared on the field with a bit of a stern look on it's face. It had a few cars behind it, but they were empty.

"Check out his special effect! When I summon him, I get to automatically add two Machine type monsters from my Graveyard to my hand. Time to pick up my Truckroid and Stealthroid from the Graveyard!"

Placing her hand in front of the Graveyard slot, the slot glowed as it pushed the two cards out. Taking them back in her hand, Izumi placed them back in her left hand.

"How did they get to the Graveyard?" Syrus asked aloud.

Sighing, Chazz gruffly said "Yo dork, don't you pay any attention!? When she played Graceful Charity, she had to discard two cards. She obviously sent those two to her Graveyard, knowing that her Expressroid would bring them back."

"Oh…" was all Syrus could say in reply.

Looking on, Illidan felt a bit of a sweat drop forming on his face. "_She gathered those monsters for a reason. I have a feeling Marie is in real trouble now._"

On the field, Izumi smirked once more, saying "Now I play the spell card Vehicroid Connection Zone! Here is how it works. I take monsters that are Vehicroids from my hand and/or field and create a Fusion type monster! So I send Expressroid, Truckroid, Stealthroid, and finally Drillroid all to the Graveyard in order to create Super Vehicroid Stealth Union (3600/3600)!"

A truck like creature with a smiling face, a stealth bomber plane with no real face, and finally a drill like creature with a drill for a nose and two drill hands with it's bottom part of it's body looking like a tank each appeared. The subway train joined them as they flew up into the air. Each began to break apart into different pieces. A pair of legs formed from the drill creature, a midsection and shoulders were formed with the jet, while the subway made shoulder pads. The truck tucked into the midsection as arms were formed from the remaining pieces of the creatures. Finally, the pieces linked together. A large head shot out of the top to take it's place. The new creature struck a battle pose, showing it's eagerness to fight.

"WHAT THE HECK IS THAT THING!?" Marie asked in complete shock.

Chuckling, Izumi answered with "This is Super Vehicroid Stealth Union. It's a fusion of four of my monsters. Oh yeah, and it's going to be your undoing. Now, I switch my remaining Vehicroids on the field into attack mode. Time to begin your end! Attack her St. Joan with Spinning Fist Strike now Super Vehicroid Stealth Union!"

Pointing it's fisted hand at the armored woman, the hand began to rapidly spin at incredible speed. Soon enough, it was pushed forward by a rocket, sending the fist flying straight for the armored woman, who looked on horrified.

Marie calmly smiled and pointed to her face down card, saying as it lifted up "Go De-Fusion! Split that tin can up into it's four pieces!"

Laughing, Izumi said "Hunny, I was waiting for you to do that. There was a reason I fused my monster together with Vehicroid Connection Zone. It passes a special effect on to the monster I created. It keeps the monster from being effected by spell, trap, and monster card effects. In other words, the only way to beat it is through brute force!"

All Marie could do was gasp in horror as she watched her De-Fusion be destroyed. The blast continued on, leaving the armored woman in the target zone.

"_Not good! I'm a wide open target this turn! This is very bad! I have to hang on though, somehow._" Marie thought frantically as a sweat drop slid down her face.

The fist finally crossed the field and made connection with the armored woman, who cried out in pain as she exploded. The wind from the explosion pushed back against Marie, making her shield her face slightly.

"Now that you're wide open, it's time my Vehicroids stampeded you! Steamroid, Gyroid, and Submarineroid, direct attack her!"

In a fury, the steam powered train rushed forward and shot steam at Marie, causing her to cover her face. The helicopter was next, coming in and crashing into her. Finally, a torpedo under the ground exploded, throwing Marie backwards a few feet and onto her side.

As the smoke cleared, it was obvious Izumi's attacks had done their work as Marie struggled to stand. Slowly, she made it to her feet, but was still wobbly.

"Since Submarineroid attacked you, he of course goes to defense. For now, that's all I have. The end is coming Marie, and it's not looking good for you." (Marie 2800, Izumi 8000)

All of the crowd was shocked at the mere loss of points Marie had suffered in one turn. She went from nearly all of her points down to almost none. In one turn, she had lost over half her life points, and now left with a field full of stronger monsters to face.

Sweat dripped down Marie's face as she stared down Izumi. "_Well, this doesn't go well for me. What ever am I going to do against those things? If it was just that fusion monster, it would be bad enough, but I have to contend with three other monsters too! I need to find a way to hang on till I can figure out what to do._"

Staring over the cards in her hand, Marie saw she had a bit of hope left. "_If I can stall long enough, I might be able to take her down. It just depends on my luck._"

Up in the stands, Illidan looked on intently. "_She lost so many life points last turn. Now she has to find a way to stop Izumi's monsters, but it won't be easy. Still, I know Marie. This is nothing she can't handle._"

"Poor Professor Marie…" Syrus said sympathetically said.

"I figured as much. Our headmaster is pathetic." Chazz flatly said.

Growling, Jaden snarled "Take that back Chazz! She's not through yet! After all, a duel's not over till the last card is played!"

Smiling, Illidan added "Very true Jaden. You underestimate Marie, Chazz. She has a very strong will, and won't let something like that fusion monster stop her. She'll fight on till she wins. Just watch."

Back on the field, Marie wiped her brow. Taking a deep breath and closing her eyes, she began to calm down and looked for her center. After reaching it, she felt much calmer and reopened her eyes. Smiling, she drew her next card.

Looking at it momentarily, she smiled again and placed it in her left hand. "To begin with, I gain 200 life points thanks to Marie the Fallen One being in my Graveyard."

A small bit of light erupted from the Graveyard and surrounded Marie, increasing her life points. Smiling at this, Marie grabbed a card from her hand and gently placed it on her Duel Disk and said "I summon Shining Angel (1400/800)."

A blonde haired young man with large golden wings sticking out his back and a white tunic and shorts appeared onto the field. His skin was rather bronzed, like he had been tanning for days.

"Shining Angel, attack Gyroid with Angelic Fist!"

Rushing forward, the angel's right hand began to glow brightly white. Upon reaching his target, he struck the helicopter creature hard with is right hand, sending the helicopter backwards somewhat, and leaving a dent in it's forehead.

Seeing the helicopter still standing, Marie asked "Why is it still here?"

Lightly chuckling at Marie's question, Izumi quickly answered with "Gyroid has an interesting special ability. Once per a turn, he can survive any battle. So, as long as he's attacked once, he stays on the field. Of course, I take the difference in our monster's points, but that's a small price I'm willing to pay."

Frowning, Marie said "Very well. I place one card face down." (Marie 3000, Izumi 7600)

Drawing her card quickly without looking at it, Izumi called out "Super Vehicroid Stealth Union, let's end this duel by leveling that angel with Spinning Fist Strike!"

The large combination machine monster released it's spinning fist straight for the blonde angel, who only stood his ground.

Before the blast could hit, Marie smirked and said "Not so fast! I have a trap card!"

Laughing loudly, Izumi countered with "You're foolish! Don't you remember, my monster is unaffected by spell, trap, and monster effects! So don't waste your breath!"

Smirking back, Marie replied "Who said my trap would affect your monster directly?"

Izumi stopped laughing and her face turned to concern. Seeing this, Marie pointed to her face down card, which raised up. "I activate Spirit Barrier! Thanks to this trap card, as long as I have a monster on the field, I take zero Battle Damage!"

A golden barrier formed around Marie as the spinning fist struck the blonde angel, who was easily destroyed. As he was destroyed, a small amount of light was left behind.

"Thanks to your attack, you activated Shining Angel's special ability! When sent to the Graveyard due to battle, I get to special summon a new Light attribute monster from my deck, so long as it has 1500 or less attack points."

Pulling her deck out, Marie quickly searched it before pulling a card out and slapping it to her Duel Disk, saying "And I pick this!"

A new blonde angel, who looked exactly like the previous appeared onto the field.

"Another pathetic Shining Angel (1400/800)? Fine, I'll crush it too! Go Steamroid, attack with Locomotion!" Izumi commanded.

The train creature steamed forward on a ramming course for the angel.

With the train nearing, Izumi said "By the way, when Steamroid attacks a monster, it gains 500 more attack points (1800 + 500 2300/1800)!"

That said, the train picked up more speed, ramming straight into the blonde angel, who could do nothing but get hit hard. As before, with the loss of the angel, a small bit of light appeared on the field.

Smirking once more, Marie called out "Keep attacking and I'll keep using my monster's special ability! Now I summon another Shining Angel (1400/800) to the field!"

Yet another blonde haired angel appeared on the field. He fluffed his wings out, showing his eagerness to fight.

Biting her lower lip, Izumi called out "I switch Gyroid to defense, and place this card face down." (Marie 3000, Izumi 7600)

Picking up another card, Marie confidently said "First, I get a small boost to my life points thanks to Marie the Fallen One. Next, I summon The Agent of Creation – Venus (1600/0)!"

A fairy with golden skin and blonde hair, as well as golden wings appeared onto the field. She wore a green dress with some gold mixed into it. In front of her were three spheres, one which was blue, another red, and finally a purple one. They were hovering in a triangle like position in front of her body.

"Time for the fun part. I activate the special ability of Venus. By paying 500 life points, I can special summon a monster known as Mystical Shine Ball to the field from my hand or deck. I pay 1500 life points, and special summon all three of my Mystical Shine Balls (500/500) to the field in defense!"

Pulling her deck out, Marie searched for all three creatures and then placed each onto the Duel Disk in a horizontal position. Three spheres that were holding a shining glow within themselves, and were surrounded by swirling white clouds.

Izumi lightly growled in frustration, but Marie lightly giggled at it. "Sorry if that makes you mad Izumi, but a girl has to do what a girl has to do. Oh, by the way, I know the secret to your Steamroid! When you attack with it, he gains 500 points during your turn, but if I attack it during my turn, it loses 500! I've seen the card in action before, and just remembered when you attacked last turn, so thanks for the reminder."

Pointing at the train, Marie called out "Venus, attack that scrap heap with Tri-Angel Blast!"

The three spheres in front of the golden angel moved into a closer triangle and began to glow with power. Once they touched one another, they glowed even brighter. Finally, energy poured out from the middle of the small amount of space between the three.

Before the blast could strike the train, Izumi pointed to her face down card, saying "I activate my trap card, Super Charge! Thanks to it, I get to draw two cards since you're attacking one of my Vehicroids."

Izumi picked both cards up just as the blast started striking the train head on. All it could do was whistle loudly as it exploded into many pieces.

"To end, I'll switch Shining Angel into defense. Your go." (Marie 1700, Izumi 7300)


	21. Chapter 21: Catfight, Pt 2

**Hello everyone! I'm feeling much better since last time. What was wrong last time was this. Last Thursday, my grandfather (mom's side) had a stroke, and I went up to stay with my grandmother till 3 am that night, which is when my mom and sister made it up. This whole weekend, I've spent my time up there, staying there with grandpa.**

**The good news is, he is responsive and alert. He nods and shakes his head, plus can move his right arm and leg, and can make grasp your hand or point at stuff. Also, he has been breathing on his own without the help of the ventilator since Saturday, which is really good. The bad news though is he's yet to move his left arm or leg, but that's somewhat expected since the stroke was on the right side of his brain. The opposite is always affected, but he may get it back, hopefully. The only other really bad thing is he hasn't opened his eyes yet, but he's trying. He can nearly open them now.**

**I'm doing alright with this so far, but I felt extremely guilty when I first saw him laying in that hospital bed due that I hadn't seen him for about two months. Life got so hectic and busy that I didn't have time to go. (/sighs\) But I've been told not to worry about it. Really, I'm trying not to, but it still bothers me I guess.**

**The only other thing bothering me about this week is my dad making it difficult for me about going up there. Him and mom don't get along at all, and he doesn't care much for my grandparents due to the past. This week, he decided to finish cutting our hay, and asked me for help. Eh, I don't mind to help him usually, but I did want to go see my grandfather some. He tried to lay a bit of a guilt trip on me over it, but I told him I'd help some this week, but not all. It irritates, no, infuriates me when people try the guilt trip trick, especially him. If I say no, and mean it, then I meant no.**

**But other than that, stuff is normal. Grandpa should hopefully recover, so no worries.**

**Ok, time to return to normalness. I can't believe no one submitted an answer to my question last time. Heh, surely I didn't make it that hard. Alright, here is another hint and chance for you all to guess at.**

**The idea for Dorm Wars came from this series of books, mainly the first. The books have been made in to movies. In it, there is a famous boy character. Name that boy.**

**If you all can't get this one, I'll cry, literally, lol. Anyways, moving on, last time, the duel between Marie and Izumi began, with things heating up quickly between the two. Marie has finally struck back, but is still in a corner. Can Marie win this one, or will Izumi steamroll her with her Vehicroids?**

**It's once again review time!**

**Very Swampeh: Heh, yeah, Vehicroids, while under Syrus's control, have kind of sucked. Izumi sure can hand a big hit to Marie, but Marie can take it. I'm sure she knows what she is doing… maybe. Heh, never know about Marie and her life points.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Lol, yes, meow. Ah, that sucks. Is the overheating light coming on already?**

**pink-kiss-candy: Thanks. Glad you had a nice surprise.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: (/Smacks hand away from ears.\) Only Marie may do that. Thanks about the chapter being good. I had thought of her using something like an air deck or something, but I thought, eh, why not give the Vehicroids a shot. Yes, a nice surprise other than they're beating Marie to a pulp, lol. It will be good, trust me, especially one I remember, hehe.**

**x-knight20: Thanks, and yes, Vehicroids are hard to win with, but are fun to use. I use them in my cobbled up deck, and they're somewhat effective, lol.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. No one expects Marie to lose a massive large amount of life points ever, lol. It's alright about the weekend. Things are looking better already.**

**Alright, I'm out for now guys. If someone happens to know the answer to my earlier question, post it in your review. I'll post an extra chapter tomorrow if someone guesses right. I hope someone figures out my question. Just in case no one saw it, here it is once more.**

**The idea for Dorm Wars came from this series of books, mainly the first. The books have been made in to movies. In it, there is a famous boy character. Name that boy.**

**Again, I hope you all get the answer to this. It's simple, lol, unlike a question I may ask later on. At any rate, enjoy guys.**

**Chapter 21**

"Sweet moves! Now she has five monsters to defend her, plus she took down one of Professor Triune's monsters, so now she only has one offensive monster left." Jaden exclaimed.

Grumbling, Chazz muttered "Not bad."

Smiling, Illidan calmly said "I told you all she wasn't done yet. Marie is a fighter, and won't go down easily."

Syrus nodded, but worriedly asked "Can she still win though? I mean, she's pushed Professor Triune's forces back a little, but Vehicroid monsters aren't easy to stop forever."

"True, but I think Professor Marie can handle it." Jaden replied confidently.

Nodding, Illidan added "She's not through yet. Marie fought back for a bit of breathing room, but she's got a long way to go yet. Just watch her though. She'll keep fighting till it's over."

The others nodded, unsure what to expect from Marie. Still, they watched with hope that Marie could recover.

On the field, Izumi was fuming. "_How dare she play me for a fool!?_"

Taking a calming breath, Izumi smiled internally, saying in her mind "_I'm not done yet. She can't beat my Super Vehicroid Stealth Union, so I'm safe, for now. I just have to keep chipping away at her defenses._"

Drawing her card, Izumi frowned at it. "I summon Jetroid (1200/1800)."

A red jet fighter with a face appeared onto the field beside the rest of the machines.

"Next, I switch Gyroid into attack mode. Jetroid, attack Mystical Shine Ball with Afterburner Flame!"

Taking to the air, the jet went diving in towards one of the three spheres of light. When it was near, it did an about face and sent flames out of it's engine straight at the sphere, who was easily scorched.

"Use Spinning Fist Strike on Venus!"

The large combination machine raised it's fist and fired it as it spun at the golden angel. She was easily struck by the fist, throwing her backwards as she exploded.

"Gyroid, slice and dice that Mystical Shine Ball with Rotor Blade Slash!"

Flying straight for the sphere, the helicopter struck the sphere of light with it's top rotor blades, easily slashing the sphere in half.

"That's all for now." (Marie 1700, Izumi 7300)

Picking up her card, Marie smirked and said "First, I get a boost thanks to Marie the Fallen One. Next, I play Pot of Greed! That's two more cards for me."

Drawing both, Marie gasped and smiled great big. "It's time I turn the tables on you! I sacrifice my remaining monsters to summon Tyrant Dragon (2900/2500)!"

Both the sphere of light and the blonde angel vanished in a flash of light, and in their place, a large dark orange dragon roared onto the field. It had massive wings, along with powerful clawed hands and feet, and a strong tail that whipped around. On it's head were two fin like scales jutting out. The dragon roared mightily, showing it's power.

Izumi only chuckled, saying "Your dragon is impressive, but not impressive enough to deal with my technological army. I'm afraid it's outclassed."

Smirking, Marie replied "True, right now, but who said I was done. I've been waiting a long time to play this, and now I can. It's a card Illidan gave me a year or two ago, but I never drew it till now. I play the spell card United We Stand, and equip it to my dragon! Here is how it works. My monster gains 800 points per a monster on my field, and since my dragon is alone, that means just 800 more points (2900 + 800 3700/2500 + 800 3300)!"

The dragon roared mightily as it's strength increased. The machine monsters each trembled lightly as they saw the power of the dragon being unleashed.

Izumi for the first time all duel had sweat forming on her head, but tried to act calm. Seeing this, Marie called out "Tyrant Dragon, attack her combo scrapheap with Tyrant Flame!"

Roaring loudly, the dragon launched itself into the air, taking aim at the large machine monster. Opening it's powerful jaws, the dragon spewed hot flames at the large machine monster, which was struck hard, causing it to let out a loud mechanical roar. At long last, the behemoth of a machine monster fell backwards in a twisted flaming heap, and finally exploded into many pieces.

The dragon landed back on the field, letting out a roar that it's rival was finally vanquished. Everyone in the crowd only gasped at the display of the monster.

"I most definitely wish that was my Duel Spirit." Chazz groaned.

All three of his Ojama Duel Spirits appeared around him, with the yellow one saying "Ah, come on boss. You know we're the best."

"Yeah, and we're much more cuddly." the green one added.

"And so much more lovable!" the black one added as well.

Growling loudly, Chazz shoed them away, saying "Leave me be you freaks!"

Illidan couldn't help but chuckle at Chazz and his Duel Spirits. "_They're quite a team._"

Back on the field, Marie smirked at the destruction, saying "I'm not done with you yet. My dragon has a special ability to boot. As long as you have at least one monster on the field after my dragon attacks once, Tyrant Dragon gets to attack a second time! Tyrant Dragon, let loose your Tyrant Flame on that jet!"

Roaring loudly, the dragon released a stream of flames at the jet, which only looked on with bravery in it's eyes.

"You just made a foolish mistake Marie! I activate my Jetroid's special ability! When it's engaged in battle, I can activate a trap card from my hand, so I play Sakuretsu Armor! Thanks to this, the attacking monster is destroyed!" Izumi boasted.

A strange armor formed around the jet. It was a scaly kind of odd armor, but seemed to protect the jet.

Chuckling, Marie quickly countered "You're the one who made a foolish mistake. You see, my dragon can't be affected by trap cards that specifically target him, so tough luck!"

Izumi only gasped as the flames burst through the armor, blowing the jet into millions of pieces. The flying shrapnel soon settled, leaving a gap where the jet once stood.

"That's all for me." (Marie 1900, Izumi 4700)

Izumi depressingly drew, saying with a hint of depression "I place one card face down and switch Gyroid to defense. I'll end my turn at that." (Marie 1900, Izumi 4700)

Drawing her next card, Marie glanced at it and then said "First, I gain 200 life points. That's unimportant, so Tyrant Dragon, attack Gyroid twice with Tyrant Flame!"

The dark orange dragon roared to life as it took to the air once more. Again, it spewed hot flames at the small helicopter, striking it easily.

As the dragon fired once more, Izumi called out "I activate the trap card Cyber Repairer! Thanks to this card, you get to draw one card, but for the duration of this turn, no Machine type monsters can be destroyed due to battle, so Gyroid is safe."

Marie simply nodded as she drew a card and watched the dragon's flames surround the small helicopter, which survived being melted down. "I'll end my turn." (Marie 2100, Izumi 4700)

"Don't give up yet Izumi!" called out a voice from the crowd. Looking over, everyone saw it was Dr. Satyr.

"You can do it, I know you can!" called out Tyranda Whisperwind, whom sat beside Dr. Satyr.

"We all know you can!" yelled out some Ra Yellow students.

Izumi smiled at this, and said "Thank you all. I will keep fighting."

Looking at Marie, Izumi declared "I'm not through! I won't go down without a fight!"

Smiling, Marie nodded, saying "Glad to hear it. I hate it when people give up when they still have a chance. So come on, show me what you got!"

Nodding, Izumi drew and smirked, saying "I play the spell card Pot of Avarice! Thanks to this, I can send five monsters from my Graveyard to my deck, shuffle, and then draw two new cards. The five monsters shall be Drillroid, Steamroid, Stealthroid, Expressroid, and Truckroid!"

Slowly, all five monster cards slid out of the Graveyard slot and into Izumi's waiting hand, who placed them in her deck. Shuffling, she then drew two cards and smiled.

"Looks like my luck is changing! I play the spell card Heavy Storm! This card now destroys all spell, trap, and magic cards on the field!"

A series of hurricanes touched down onto the field. One struck the barrier surrounding Marie, while another struck the equip spell card that was standing beside of Marie. Marie slightly growled in frustration as she watched her dragon's strength weaken (3700 – 800 2900/3300 – 800 2500).

"Next, I summon Cycloid (800/1000) to the field!"

A red bicycle with fist like handlebars and an eye for it's headlight appeared onto the field with a small bell ringing.

"I'll now equip him with the spell card Training Wheels! Thanks to this spell card, he can now direct attack you! Next, I'll switch Submarineroid into attack mode. Time for a double whammy! Cycloid, Submarineroid, direct attack together!"

The bike let out a small dinging of it's bell and raced forward as the submarine submerged into the ground. Soon enough, the bike struck Marie with it's right fist, and then an explosion erupted from the ground, striking her yet again.

"See, I'm finished just yet! To end, Submarineroid switches to defense mode, while I must remove Cycloid along with Training Wheels from play. Of course, they return next turn, but it's all good till then." (Marie 500, Izumi 4700)

Gasping at the sight, Syrus said aloud "This is bad! Professor Marie has only 500 life points left!"

"Buck up soldier. She fought hard, but it happens." Hasselberry said, trying to help Syrus feel better.

"It's not over yet guys. Remember, a duel isn't over till the last card is played." Jaden chided.

Looking on, Chazz simply stated "It's over Slacker. All she has going is that dragon, and even it can't help now."

Smirking, Illidan interjected "I wouldn't count on it Chazz. Marie is much stronger than you think."

Back on the field, Marie smiled, saying "Not bad at all Izumi. See, I knew you weren't finished. Of course, I'm not done yet either."

Chuckling, Izumi replied "It's over Marie. Regardless of what you do this turn, next turn, you will lose. I'll get my Cycloid back, and I'll be able to take out the last of your life points."

Slightly smirking, Marie fierily replied "That's where you're wrong! For years, I've never given up. I heard a student say it best this week. A duels not over till the last card is played! And I intend on following that motto, no matter what! So watch this"

Drawing her card, Marie smiled, showing her card as she said "To kick things off, I gain 200 life points. Next, I play Graceful Charity, so three new cards for me, but when I'm finished, I have to send two to the grave."

Picking up three new cards, Marie examined them and then pitched two cards from her hand. "I'll send these two to the Grave now. Next, I summon Majestic Mech – Ohka (2400/1400) to the field."

A lion like creature made up of red and pink energy with powerful energy wings then roared onto the field. It's tail was made like a pink blade, and a majority of it's body glowed brightly.

"How could you summon that monster? It's a level six, which means you needed a sacrifice for it!" Izumi questioned.

Winking, Marie sweetly replied "It's all about the special ability Izumi. My Mech's special ability allows it to be summoned without making a sacrifice. Of course, it's destroyed at the end of my turn, but it won't be around long enough for that."

Placing another spell card in her Duel Disk, she said "I play the spell card Gift of the Martyr! This card allows me to sacrifice a monster and add it's strength to another monster for this turn, so I sacrifice my Majestic Mech – Ohka and give it's points to Tyrant Dragon (2900 + 2400 5300/2500)!"

The pink energy lion vanished quickly, but the dark orange dragon roared loudly as it's body glowed light red. It's strength increased greatly, causing it to send out a loud roar.

"What a waste." Izumi commented with a disappointed look on her face.

Smirking again, Marie wagged her finger, saying "Not quite, since I'm equipping my dragon with this."

Showing the card that she spoke of, Izumi quickly gasped as fear ran through her eyes. "Not that card!"

Smirking once more, Marie replied sarcastically "But oh yes that card! I play the equip spell Big Bang Shot! Thanks to this, my dragon gains 400 attack points (5300 + 400 5700/2500) to start with. Next, he gains trample effect, which if you didn't know, means when I attack your defense mode monster, I can deal the difference in my dragon's attack points and your monster's defense points directly to your life points!"

All Izumi could do was watch in horror as she realized things were over. No matter what happened, Marie was going to win. Hanging her head, she said in bare whisper "Finish it."

"Izumi, don't quit with you head hung! Go out proud!" called out Dr. Satyr.

Knowing he was right, she defiantly raised her head and said "End it."

Nodding, Marie replied "Very well. Tyrant Dragon, attack her Submarineroid with Tyrant Flame!"

Roaring loudly, the dragon took flight and released a stream of flames, which struck the submarine head on. The submarine moaned in pain as it melted into a puddle before exploding. The remainder of the superheated damage went flying back at Izumi, who only could brace herself for the impact. It knocked her backwards a few feet, but she remained standing, but barely. Smoke poured off her body, and she was shaking, but still, she stood with her head up.

"Tyrant Dragon, attack her Gyroid now to finish this duel!" commanded Marie.

Following it's master's command, the dragon rose into the air, roaring loudly once more. Taking aim, the dragon released a stream of flames at the small helicopter, which only stood there with it's wheel arms crossed. The flames struck the helicopter, causing it to explode as flames flew back at Izumi, striking her head on. This time she fell to her hands and knees.

As the flames died down, Izumi's life points were drained to zero. This caused the holograms on the field to vanish and both Duel Disks to power down.

The crowd loudly cheered, as Chancellor Shepherd cleared his voice and announced over the microphone "The winner is Professor Marie Stormrage!"

Marie smiled gratefully at everyone, but quickly walked over to Izumi's slumped over form. Offering a hand, Marie said "Good duel Izumi. You were very close."

Looking up at Marie, Izumi's face softened, as she replied with "Thanks. You played a great game. I thought I had you, but I see I still have much to learn."

Izumi took Marie's hand, and with a small tug, Izumi stood up again. The crowd cheered both teachers on, making each smile.

"That was fun." Marie commented.

Izumi only nodded in reply, offering a hand to Marie. Graciously, Marie took it and shook hands, causing the crowd to cheer more.

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Back at the Slifer Dorm that night, all of the students congratulated Marie upon returning. She smiled through it all, thanking each of them.

She finally made it to the front of the room and got everyone's attention. Once she had it, she kindly smiled and said "Thank you all. I hope tonight's duel gives each of you a little more confidence in yourselves. I mean, if a Slifer professor can beat a Ra professor, I think any Slifer student can beat a Ra student. I believe in each of you, and I hope that this has given you an insight that we aren't weak. The color of your jacket doesn't matter. As I heard Jaden put it so eloquently, a duel's not over till the last card is played. That means there is always hope to win, so don't feel intimidated by a yellow or blue jacket. Just go duel and give it all you got, because you never know how things will turn out till the duel is over."

All of the students nodded and applauded her. Illidan smiled at her, knowing her speech had helped give some confidence.

Soon enough, the students headed off for bed, leaving only the teachers to themselves. The group had retired to Illidan and Marie's home, and was now sitting in the living room.

"You did good Marie." Zane said, with a small bit of praise in his voice.

Smiling back, Marie nodded and replied kindly with "Thank you Zane."

"Well, I think that should help the students realize that there is hope." Illidan commented.

Nodding in reply, Zane added "Hopefully, it will give them the confidence to go out and duel students in Ra and Obelisk."

"I don't know about Obelisk, Zane." Marie replied with concern in her voice.

"They maybe a bit more confident against Ra Dorm, but Obelisk Dorm is a whole other ball game for them."

Sighing lightly, Illidan said "True. If we could only duel an Obelisk Blue teacher, we might be able to prove they have nothing to fear."

"Yes, if they'd follow Jaden's example of dueling just for fun, I think all of the Slifer students would challenge anyone." Zane added.

Each let off a sigh, as they sat thinking. Finally, Zane stood, saying "It's late, and I should head back. We have another random duel tomorrow, so I guess I'll see you all there again."

Both Illidan and Marie stood, with Illidan saying "Yeah. Hopefully, none of us will be forced to duel one another."

Smirking, Zane replied "I wouldn't mind a duel with either of you really."

Raising an eyebrow, Illidan smiled, saying "Is that so? Well, perhaps some day you'll get your wish, if not tomorrow." 

Lightly chuckling, Zane replied "Maybe. But we'll never know till tomorrow. Till then, goodnight."

That said, Zane left the house, heading for his own room, leaving both Illidan and Marie alone.

Taking Marie into his arms for a tight embrace, Illidan kissed her on the forehead, saying "You did very good tonight. I knew you could win."

Lightly blushing at his praise, Marie simply said "I only did what I've always done. I fought hard, knowing I couldn't quit, no matter what."

Smiling at her, he replied "Still, you did rather well. I think what you did will truly help our students."

Nodding in reply, she kissed his cheek and broke up the embrace. She slowly sauntered off towards the bedroom. As she reached the door, she winked at him, giving a very suggestive look that said "Come to bed."

Smirking, Illidan turned out the lights and headed straight for the bedroom, knowing exactly what Marie wanted.

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On the hill overlooking the Slifer Dorm, a stranger in a cloak with a hood stood watching with an amused look on his face as the light in the small house went off. "Enjoy your life as it is for now Illidan, because soon, things will change."

Hearing someone approaching, the stranger turned to find a young man with brown spiky hair and a red uniform, along with another young man who had long red spiky hair and wore a yellow uniform, and finally a young girl that had blonde hair and wore a blue uniform.

The three arrived, with the stranger turning towards them. "I see the three of you made it." he grunted out.

All three nodded, with the brown haired young man saying "We got your message. So, what's up?"

Smirking from underneath his hood, the stranger replied "I have called you all here to let you know that we will act soon enough. It will take some patience from the three of you, but soon enough, all will be as it should be."

"And we'll be normal again?" the brown haired young man asked.

Nodding, the stranger replied "Of course. I never lie about what I can or can't do. I promised your memories back, and I guarantee they will be back. You must be patient though. It will take some time to achieve our goals. Till then, you must act as if nothing is going on. Understand?"

All three nodded, and the stranger said "Good. Now, go back to your dorms. Remember, your day is coming, but you must be patient. I will tell you when we will make our move."

The three nodded again and bowed. Together, the three left, leaving the stranger lightly chuckling. "Soon, I shall correct the mistakes of the past by fixing the future for all. Shando, I only wish you could see what I plan to do. I know you would be so proud. Now if only that stubborn son of yours would help me. Hopefully he will be much more receptive this time."

Looking down on the Slifer Dorm once more, the stranger heard a whisper say "_He will play his part, or we shall eliminate him this time. We won't make the same mistake as we did last time._"

"Yes Master. I understand." the stranger whispered back.

Taking one last long look, the stranger whispered into the air "I hope you do the smart thing this time Illidan. I would hate to kill the son of my teacher."

That said, the stranger turned away from the cliff, retreating to his place of hiding.


	22. Chapter 22: Mages and Machines, Pt 1

**Hey there everyone! Well, my day was decent yesterday. Heh, I went and helped my dad finish the last of our hay only to have a piece on our bailer breaker. Luckily, he got someone else close by to finish up for us. I also got a report on my grandfather, and he's still getting better. He can halfway open his eyes now, plus their going to take the ventilator away soon, like tomorrow I think. Overall, he's doing better each time I hear about him, which I'm happy. I get to see him tomorrow, so I'll get to see first hand how he's doing.**

**Hurray! Someone guessed the correct answer, although I could disqualify the answer, hehe. I asked for the boy's name, not the movie name, lol. Kidding of course. Thank you Isis for guessing the correct answer, hence this chapter is just for you. The idea for the Dorm Wars came from the first Harry Potter book/movie (The Sorcerers Stone). Since the three houses of Hogwarts had a competition, I thought why not put the GX Dorms up to it.**

**Last time, Marie won her duel against Izumi, giving the students some hope of winning the Dorm Wars. Later that night, the mysterious stranger met up with three people, who appear to be students, but whom are they? And what does this stranger have planned for Illidan? And how does he know Shando, Illidan's father in the past!?**

**Alright, now it's time once again! That's right, it's review time!**

**pink-kiss-candy: Lol, one word. Well, wow does say it all I guess, hehe.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Yes, plot development at long last, lol. Too bad that overheat light burned out. Maybe you just need a thermometer. But yes, you got the answer correct, so congrats!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. It's cool about my grandpa. He's getting better each day, so I'm not that worried now. Yeah, the guilt trip thing sucks.**

**x-knight20: Thanks for the compliment and for thinking of my grandpa.**

**Ok, that does it for the reviews. Right quick, I'll fill you guys in on what's going on with this story. I'm currently working on the final chapters, so once I finish, I can post 3 a week instead of 2. Also, I am currently working on a one-shot/songfic for Inuyasha entitled **_**This Animal**_**. I should have it done sometime in the near future for any Inuyasha fans that might be out there. As well, I have plans to write 2 more songfics before I begin diving into my next major story, **_**Another**_**. When **_**Another**_** will be done, heh, I don't know. It's going to be a long Inuyasha fic, I'm sure of that much. As for anymore stories dealing with Illidan and Marie, well, as I've said before, there are no more once this one ends. I've thought about going beyond this one, but changed my mind. No need to really, plus I think where I end this story will pretty much be a definite ending for this series.**

**Alright, I'd better go. I hope you all enjoy this chapter. I look forward to the reviews from it. Thanks to everyone for your reviews this time, and to each of you who have wrote back about my grandfather. You guys are so awesome, so keep up the reviews and I'll catch you all next week.**

**Chapter 22**

In the middle of the night, Illidan suddenly sat up in bed panting hard, with sweat pouring from his shaking body.

Putting his face in his hands, he whispered "It was just a nightmare."

Looking over to see Marie still contently asleep, he slowly slid out of bed and went to the bathroom. Using a damp rag, he wiped his face off and looked up into the mirror. Terror was still filling his eyes.

Deciding to get some fresh air, Illidan walked outside onto the balcony of their home. Standing there, he took a deep breath, trying hard to calm down.

"Why now bring up those horrible memories?" he softly asked himself aloud.

Looking down at his chest, he lightly chuckled, saying "I swear, if I had the Millennium Key still, it would be glowing for sure."

Taking a deep breath again, he stared up into the sky, observing the clear night sky with all the stars twinkling. Softly smiling, he recalled how much he truly enjoyed staring at the sky.

"What's wrong?" Marie asked sleepily as she came up behind him wearing a silver nightgown. It had two small straps at the top and hugged her curves in all the right places, and went to her ankles in length.

Sighing, Illidan waved her off, saying "Nothing."

Lightly grunting, Marie came up and embraced him from behind, placing her head on his back. "Don't do this Illidan."

Knowing she would find out eventually, he broke up the embrace and turned around to embrace her from the front. Looking down, he sighed as she glanced into her chocolate orbs.

"I had a dream of the past. That's all." he said with a bit of hesitance.

"And…" Marie asked, knowing there was more.

Lightly sighing, he continued with "It was about the time Zell kidnapped you."

Nodding, Marie held Illidan closer and placed her chin in the crook of his neck. "It's alright. You don't have to tell me anymore."

Thankful, Illidan pulled her back and softly said "I don't know why I'd think about him though. It's been five millennia, and I know he's dead, but why now, I don't know."

Thinking for a moment, Marie replied "Possibly due that I had that nightmare the other night about him. Maybe that just triggered a memory in you to resurface."

Pondering for a moment, Illidan finally said "Maybe…"

Softly smiling, Marie hugged him again and then pulled back, saying "Come to bed. You'll be tired if you don't."

Nodding, Illidan followed her back in, but still couldn't shake the thoughts to why he had a vision of his past memories. "_There has to be a reason that memory came up._"

Finally ignoring it, Illidan slid back into bed and fell back to sleep. "_I'll worry about it tomorrow or someday…_" he thought as he slipped into unconscious sleep.

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The next day passed by quickly. It began with Banner almost attempting to sneak a peak up Marie's nightgown, which was quickly foiled by Marie dropping a heavy book on his head. Banner quickly retreated to his room, knowing Illidan would kill him if he didn't.

The students mostly relaxed all day long, with most just staying in their rooms or chatting. Some dueled, but most just relaxed for a majority of the day.

Finally, evening came, and the time for the second duel of the weekend between teachers arrived. Both Illidan and Marie showed up along with all the other teachers on the stage at the dueling ring with Duel Disks and decks ready.

The students had piled in once again into the stands, hoping to watch their teachers and headmasters duel. Each was semi-excited once again after watching the duel the night before.

Clearing his throat, Chancellor Shepherd stepped to the center of the dueling ring, and said "Attention students!"

All eyes went to the Chancellor as he continued with "I welcome you all back again tonight. Without further ado, let's get this show on the road! Activate the random duel generator!"

The screen that was centered at the middle of the field on the far wall buzzed to life as names were quickly generated. Many names kept being ran as the generator sorted through them all.

At long last, the first name was picked, showing Dr. Crowler as the first of two to be picked. Crowler puffed out his chest, showing his usual arrogance about being picked.

Soon enough, the other name generator stopped, and all gasped as it came up with Professor Illidan Stormrage. Crowler only glowered at Illidan, but finally smirked.

"The duel tonight will be Dr. Vellian Crowler vs. Professor Illidan Stormrage! It is Obelisk Blue Headmaster vs. Slifer Red Headmaster in a grudge match!" announced the Chancellor with much excitement.

The student body was soon extremely excited. There hadn't been a duel between Obelisk and Slifer Headmasters before, and no one wanted to miss it.

"This is going to be a sweet duel!" exclaimed Jaden.

Crossing his arms in his usual manner, Chazz said with a bored expression "He'll probably lose."

Syrus looked over at Jaden, who beamed with pure enthusiasm, and then back at Chazz. After a moment, he said "I think he can do it. You're right Jaden, Professor Illidan will win!"

"Tough call soldier. Dr. Crowler is a tough commando, so I don't know if Professor Stormrage can combat that." Hasselberry commented.

"I wouldn't underestimate Professor Stormrage guys. We all saw what his wife can do last night, so you never know what he can do." Alexis interjected.

All seemed to ponder it, except Jaden, who simply said "Still, this will be one heck of a sweet duel!"

Back on the field, Marie gave Illidan a good luck kiss, and whispered in his ear "Good luck my love."

Smiling at her, he whispered back "Thank you."

She turned and left the field quickly and took a seat near Jaden's group. Smiling, she silently said "_I know he can do it._"

Meanwhile, Bonaparte pulled Crowler to the side, and said low enough so only Dr. Crowler could hear him "You have to win this! Put that slacker in his place, and then we will be able to get rid of the Red Dorm!"

Waving Bonaparte off, Crowler replied "Don't worry. That slacker won't beat me. Besides, I owe him one for helping eliminate me in that three way duel!"

Walking away from Bonaparte and back to the middle of the field, Crowler smirked as he arrived in the middle. Illidan awaited him, along with Chancellor Shepherd.

Seeing both had great intensity in their eyes, Shepherd said "I want a clean duel. You both know the rules. By the way, Crowler, since you were picked first, you have option of who goes first."

"This slacker can." Crowler replied without hesitation.

Lightly smirking, Illidan said "Best be careful with your words Dr. Crowler, for they could be your undoing."

"Enough!" the Chancellor interjected.

Turning the mike back on, Chancellor Shepherd announced "Professor Illidan shall begin the duel first."

Stepping off the stage, Shepherd called out "Begin!"

Both Illidan and Crowler simultaneously said "Game on!"

Each of their Duel Disks came to life, with Illidan's sliding out and powering up, and Crowler's lighting up. Both drew their first five cards and prepared to duel.

Drawing his sixth card, Illidan calmly placed it on his Duel Disk, saying "I place a monster face down and one card face down. That's all for me." (Illidan 8000, Crowler 8000)

Chuckling, Crowler held his hand out under where his card slot was, as the card slowly slid out, saying "What a pathetic first move. But then again, that's expected for a Slifer Red. Now, I'll show you a true first move! I play two copies of the spell card Fiend Sanctuary! Thanks to these spell cards, I can special summon two Metal Fiend Tokens (0/0)!"

Two small creatures made of metal spheres that gradually got larger appeared in a hunched over stance on the field.

"I now sacrifice both of my tokens to summon Ancient Gear Golem (3000/3000)!"

Both small metal creatures vanished from the field in a flash and a large machine creature made up of gears and heavy metal with a single red eye appeared on the field. It let out a small mechanical groan, showing it's readiness for battle.

"Wow, he already summoned his strongest monster!" Syrus exclaimed in total shock.

"Dr. Crowler isn't messing around today." Jaden commented with interested eyes.

With a grave voice, Bastion added "This doesn't go well for Professor Illidan."

"He's already outmaneuvered, and it's just the first turn!" Hasselberry added.

Looking on, Marie calmly watched. Seeing her calmness, Zane coolly said "He'll be alright."

She only nodded, seemingly fixated on the duel.

Back on the field, Dr. Crowler laughed, saying "You're only one turn in and already in major trouble Illidan! Have you realized yet that you are no match for me?!"

"Feh, as if one turn proves anything." Illidan coolly stated back.

Highly annoyed and angered, Crowler yelled "Ancient Gear Golem, attack that pathetic face down monster with Mechanized Melee!"

Pulling back it's massive right arm, the mechanical behemoth pushed forward it's heavy metal fist straight for the face down card image with incredible speed.

Before it could hit, Illidan called out "Thanks for falling into my trap! I activate my trap…"

Laughing obnoxiously, Crowler said "You are a slow one. Since you didn't know, I'll tell you a little secret about my Ancient Gear Golem. It has a very special ability. When it attacks, you can't activate a spell or trap card till the Damage Step! That means no trap activation for you!"

Growling loudly in frustration, Illidan watched as the mechanical monster continued on. The face down card image on the field flashed a bit of light up, revealing a young man with blonde hair that stood up, a red headband, and a purple set of tight fitting armor that had straps at the shoulders and no sleeves appeared. He held a green staff in front of his body, hoping to block the on coming attack.

Slightly calming, Illidan called out "At least I'll take no damage from this attack."

Laughing manically again, Crowler wagged his finger, saying "Not exactly. You see, when Ancient Gear Golem attacks, his other special ability kicks in. If his attack points are higher than your monster's defense points, he deals the difference directly to your life points!"

"Trample!" Illidan said in shock.

Smirking, Crowler added "Yes, that's the slang you slackers use for it."

At that moment, the large machine monster fist finally struck the young mage, who could do nothing but scream in pain as he exploded into millions of pieces. The fist of the machine monster didn't stop though, for it followed through and struck Illidan hard, knocking him five feet backwards and onto the ground.

The entire crowd gasped as they watched the carnage. After a moment, Illidan stood up and quickly moved back to his position.

A small grin came over Illidan's face, as he said "Thanks for that."

Confused, Crowler asked "What do you mean?"

Smirking, Illidan replied "Simple. When you destroyed my Apprentice Magician (400/800), you triggered his effect. Now I get to special summon one new Spellcaster type monster that's level two or lower to the field in face down defense mode."

Pulling his deck out, Illidan quickly picked a card and slapped it to his Duel Disk. Putting his deck back, he smirked once more, saying "Is that all you have?"

Highly annoyed, Crowler squawked back "Don't get cheeky with me! I place one card face down and end my turn." (Illidan 5800, Crowler 8000)

Quickly drawing his next card, Illidan called out "I start by playing Pot of Greed! That means two more cards for me."

Picking up two more cards, Illidan smiled and said "Next, I flip summon my face down monster, so meet Magician of Faith (300/400)!"

A young female mage with shoulder length pink hair that was tied up in a pony tail, excluding some bangs that wore purple robes with a red undershirt and pink pants and a golden half moon staff appeared on the field. She gave off a small wink to Crowler, who seemingly ignored her.

"Thanks to flipping her, I get to add a spell card from my Grave to my hand, so Pot of Greed is returning now."

Slowly, the spell card slid out of the Graveyard slot and into Illidan's waiting hand, who simply turned it towards Crowler and said "And guess what, I'm playing it again, meaning two more cards for me!"

As Illidan picked up two more cards, the crowd discussed his strategy.

"He played an excellent move!" Bastion said with enthusiasm beaming through.

Smirking, Chazz simply stated "He managed to pull off a decent combo."

"Nice move!" Alexis commented.

Staring on, Zane smiled, mentally saying "_He purposely got his monster destroyed last turn so he could play this strategy. I would be willing to bet Pot of Greed was already in his hand. He simply waited for Crowler to destroy his monster, and then played his Magician of Faith back so he could use it to draw more cards. In one turn, he drew five cards. That type of strategy takes a lot of thinking. I'm beginning to think he is quite the strategist_."

"_Good job Illidan. That's the way to start a comeback._" Marie silently thought with a smile.

On the field, Illidan glanced at his new cards and smirked, saying "Let's see how you like this! I sacrifice my Magician of Faith to summon Cybernetic Magician (2400/1000)!"

A small flash appeared on the field as the young female mage vanished, and a new mage clad in white appeared. He had a small pointed hat, a white and silver trench coat/robes, blue pants, white boots that went up to his knees, and a small l-shaped rod that had a small bit past the corner of the L size. His hair was blonde, and his skin tone was light green.

Pointing at the new mage, Crowler quickly yelled "That monster has fewer points than my Golem! Why bother summoning that pathetic mage!?"

Smirking at the comment, Illidan replied "Haven't you ever heard that attack points aren't everything? My mage is here to prove that, and it starts by me sending my Diffusion-Wave Motion to the Graveyard in order to activate his special ability! Since I sent a card to the Graveyard, he now reduces one monster's attack points to 2000 for this turn. Guess who is losing points!"

Crowler only shrieked in horror as he watched the mage begin to slightly glow white along with the machine creature. Soon enough, the stats on creature lowered to 2000 (2000/3000).

"NO FAIR!" he squawked out.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan replied "All is fair in Duel Monsters. Cybernetic Magician, cut that tin can down if you would please!"

Nodding curtly at his master's orders, the mage leapt into the air and pointed his staff at the weakened machine creature. In a flash, a white sphere flew across the field and struck the machine creature, which let out a loud cry as a hole was created through it by the large sphere. Soon enough, the creature exploded, sending parts flying all over the field, causing Crowler to cringe.

"I'm not through yet, for I activate the spell card Magical Dimension! With this, I can sacrifice my Cybernetic Magician for yet another Spellcaster from my hand, so I pick Chaos Command Magician (2400/1900)!"

A golden statue suspended by four chains within a small cube like metal frame appeared onto the field. The statue's top half opened up and sent out a beam of light at the white robed mage, who was instantly sucked in. Immediately, the doors closed on the statue, only to reopen moments later to shoot out another beam. The new beam formed a new mage, who was in mostly black robes with a little yellow trim. His facial skin was light blue, which was the only skin really shown. The rest of his body was wrapped up in the black robes, with a long black cape on his back and a large black hat on his head. In his hands was a short black staff that was lightly glowing yellow on the end.

"Chaos Command Magician, attack him directly with Chaos Burst!"

The mage instantly followed his orders. He leapt into the air and aimed his staff at Crowler directly and released a large yellow sphere of energy at him. Crowler only shrieked as the blast struck him, knocking him to one knee.

Smiling at his handy work, Illidan called out "I place one card face down. Well, back to you Dr. Crowler." (Illidan 5800, Crowler 5200)

"He managed to turn things around so easily." Bastion said in pure shock.

Nodding, Jaden quickly replied "I told you guys he wouldn't go down easily. This duel is going to be really sweet to the end!"

Smirking at their comments, Marie continued to stare on. "_Nice job Illidan. Keep it up, and you'll win this duel._"

Back on the field, Crowler was fuming. "HOW DARE YOU DO THAT TO ME!"

Smirking at Crowler's temper tantrum, Illidan calmly replied "I only done what you said I couldn't do. Is that a crime?"

Fuming even more, Crowler drew his card, yelling "I will not be beaten by a slacker!"

Glancing at his card, he smirked and began chuckling, saying "I have you now. I first activate my trap card, Level Conversion Lab! I must first show you one monster from my hand, and I then roll a die. If the result of the roll is a one, my monster goes to the Grave, but if it's anything else, that is my monster's level for this round."

Showing his card Illidan softly growled, making Crowler chuckle even more. "I see you remember my Ancient Gear Golem. Well, my second one should be more welcomed than my previous one. And now, let's see what level my Golem will be!"


	23. Chapter 23: Mages and Machines, Pt 2

**Hey there everyone! This weekend was pretty cool. I went up to see my grandfather, who is doing so much better. They took him off the ventilator, but put him on a trake (I can't spell it. The tube that goes in your neck) temporarily. He's possibly off of it by now, but I'm unsure due that I forgot to call my grandmother last night… Anyways, he looked a lot better, and he was opening his eyes a bit. He knew who was there, and answered questions with nods. Plus, he has movement in his left leg now, which is excellent since the doctors weren't sure if he'd ever regain use in it. All that is left now is his left arm, but that will come in time we hope. They were preparing to move him from ICU (intensive care unit) down to a step down room, and then from there, if possible, my grandmother is going to move him closer to home for rehabilitation. I'm so happy to see him doing much better, and he is definitely recognizing things, answering questions, and such. **

**Alright, moving on. Last time, Illidan had a nightmare/memory, but who is this person he had it of, and why now? And the duel between Illidan and Crowler is heating up, with Illidan seemingly trying to wrestle control away, only to have Crowler battle back. Can Illidan manage to hang on, or is Crowler too much for Illidan to handle?**

**Time for my favorite part of the morning! It is once again review time!**

**Very Swampeh: It's alright. He's doing much better, thankfully. Yeah, it's somewhat hard, but I've managed. At the rate he's moving, hopefully when it's all said and done, he will fully recovered. He's showing good signs that he will. Yes, the Dorm Wars did come from the House competitions. It's all good about missing the chapter. Yes, it's going to be entertaining. Lol, yes, Crowler's duels have always been interesting. Heh, we'll see about Illidan winning though.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks, and yep, a cliffy, hehe. Heh, it would have been alright to guess. No one else did, well, other than Isis originally, lol. Afterwards, everyone knew, lol.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Lol, yes, Crowler seems to have short term memory. Possibly he should be reminded. Yeah, no one else got the answer to the question till after the fact, lol. I was somewhat surprised myself, hehe. Yeah, I'm glad he's getting better too. I'm sure he can't wait to get out of there also.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Heh, well, you get to see Crowler and Illidan go at it now, one on one. It's alright about my grandpa. Yeah, he's tough, and I'm sure he'll continue to only get better. Yep, Marie and Izumi had a nice clash, and the duel between Illidan and Crowler should be intense. Eh, I wouldn't count on the new dragon. It came out after I wrote this duel, lol. Plus, you need the gear creatures to even make the thing work right, which sucks. Thanks for the comments.**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Yeah, grandpa is slowly recovering. Hopefully, before I know it, he'll be out of the hospital. He's on his way, but it'll just take time.**

**Thank you everyone for your continuous support of my story, and for the support towards my grandfather. It means the world to me. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart for it.**

**Ok, here is a quick update on my writings. I'm still finishing up on the end of this story, but it looks like it might be another week or so, pending on how hard I work at it. I can't get in the mood to write at home, so I do most of it at work when I have some free time. Still, there isn't much time either, lol. But I'll try and finish up so I can post more chapters a week. Also, my other short stories are on hold till I finish this story up, so I'll maybe put more effort into finishing this story. We'll just have to see.**

**At any rate, thank you to the new person who has added me to their favs. Feel free to drop a review if you have an opinion or comment on my story. As for everyone else, again, thank you for your continuing reviews. I appreciate all of them. Till next time, enjoy this chapter. Later!**

**Chapter 23**

Crowler snapped his fingers and a die appeared in the air. It began spinning wildly and finally flung itself higher into the air. It soon came crashing down to the ground and rolled for what seemed forever. At long last, it stopped on a three, making Crowler annoyingly laugh.

"It's a three, meaning my Ancient Gear Golem's level is three! Since it's level three, I don't need any sacrifices for it, so without further ado, I summon Ancient Gear Golem (3000/3000)!"

With a simple motion, Crowler slapped the card onto his Duel Disk, causing the large mechanical behemoth to slowly rise out of the ground. Like the previous monstrosity, the creature let out a small mechanical moan as it's single red eye lit up.

"Ancient Gear Golem, grind that mage into dust!"

Another loud mechanical moan was heard as the whirling of gears filled the air also. Pulling back his right arm, the machine launched it's fist forward into the mage, who had a look of surprise on his face as he exploded into millions of pieces.

Laughing at the destruction, Crowler braggingly said "I think that should put you in your place. But to make sure, I activate the spell card Ancient Gear Drill! This card allows me to send one card from my hand to the Graveyard, and now I get to place one spell card from my deck onto the field face down."

A large metal drill like structure appeared onto the field. It slowly began to drill into the ground as Crowler pulled his deck and glanced through it. At long last, he picked a card and placed it in his spell/trap card slot, causing the large drill to vanish.

"I think that one will do. Go ahead and do your worst!" (Illidan 5200, Crowler 5200)

Remaining calm, Illidan drew his next card. After staring at it for a moment, he finally said "I start by summoning my Magician's Valkyrie (1600/1800) in defense."

A young female mage with long chestnut colored hair that reached her mid-back that wore a mostly light blue with some light purple like dress and an odd looking light blue mage's hat appeared onto the field. She held a scepter in her right hand that looked like a ram's horn on the end of a stick that had three green jewels on each side. The scepter itself was a light grey. She took a one kneed stance with her arms crossed.

"Next I'll play the spell card Mirage of Nightmare. During your Standby Phase, I get to draw till I hold four cards in my hand, but during my Standby Phase, I have to toss out the same number of cards I drew. To end, I'll place two cards face down, and that'll do it for me." (Illidan 5200, Crowler 5200)

Sneering at Illidan, Crowler picked up his next card and laughed, saying "You're finished this turn!"

Interrupting, Illidan called out "You'll have to wait to finish that sentence actually. Since it's your Standby Phase, I get to draw four new cards thanks to Mirage of Nightmare."

Grumbling, Crowler smirked once more and arrogantly said "It won't matter! I will begin your destruction by playing a spell card known as Ancient Gear Explosive! Thanks to this little spell card, I get to pick one Ancient Gear creature on my field. I then get to deal you damage equal to half my monster's original attack points to you life points!"

"That means he'll lose 1500 points!" Jaden said aloud in somewhat shock.

Crowler only smirked once more, saying "I pick my Ancient Gear Golem naturally, so Ancient Gear Golem, give him a little surprise!"

A small bomb like device appeared in the large machine's hands. Immediately, the device activated, with small gears grinding away. With ease, the large monstrosity threw the grenade like device at Illidan, which exploded directly in front of him, making him fall to one knee.

Laughing manically, Crowler was quick to say "Just stay down and admit defeat. I'd hate to embarrass you any further than I already have."

Standing easily, Illidan confidently replied "No worries here. Go ahead and attack if you want."

"Wow, Professor Illidan sure is playing calmly." Syrus commented.

Jaden simply nodded, saying "Yeah, it's like he's not losing his cool over what's going on."

"It is quite a talent. Most duelists instantly lose their cool when they're backed into a corner like this." Bastion added.

Nodding, Alexis said "Yeah, but Professor Illidan is in trouble right now. Even though he's got enough life points to pad him for now, he won't survive forever playing defense."

All nodded, hoping that Illidan would find a way to beat Crowler. Marie however looked on with hopeful eyes. "_You can do it Illidan. Don't give up yet._"

On the field, Crowler chuckled once more, saying "You seem confident you'll survive, don't you?"

"I'm unafraid of your creature. Even if you strike down my mage, I'll survive this round." Illidan calmly replied.

Smirking, Crowler called out "Then let's see you survive this! I activate my face down card, Limiter Removal! This card now doubles my Ancient Gear Golem's attack points for this turn (3000 2 6000/3000)!"

The large mechanical monster let out a loud mechanical groan as all of it's gears came to life, spinning at an incredible speed. The eye of the creature glowed twice as bright as it glared at the young female mage.

"You won't survive this blast! Ancient Gear Golem, attack that mage with Mechanized Melee!"

The gears in the ancient machine creature whirled louder than ever as it pulled it's right arm back. In an instant, it released it's powerful arm at the young female mage, who could do nothing but take the brunt of the assault. She cried out in pain as she finally exploded into pieces, leaving Illidan wide open.

He was struck hard by the large mechanical fist, causing a large explosion with plenty of smoke to appear on the field.

Crowler only laughed, saying "I told you no Slifer Slacker would beat me! That's what you get for being such a …"

Before he could finish, he saw the smoke clearing with Illidan still standing. He was panting hard and hunched over, but still remained standing.

"Fall already!" cried out Crowler.

Slightly smirking, Illidan stood up straight and caught his breath. Pointing at a face down card, he called out "Not yet. I activate my spell card, Emergency Provisions! By sacrificing a spell or trap card on the field, I gain 1000 life points, so I'll send Mirage of Nightmare and a face down card, Magic Cylinder, both to the Graveyard, thus granting me 2000 more life points! That means your assault didn't win the game, just yet."

Infuriated by Illidan's move, Crowler yelled "You should have lost!"

After a moment of loudly growling, Crowler pulled the last card in his hand out and showed it, saying "I activate the spell card Dimension Hole! With this, I can remove my Ancient Gear Golem from the field till my next Standby Phase!"

A small black hole opened up above the field and sucked the large creature in, leaving no sign of the ancient machine creature.

"That's all for now, but in one turn, I will finish you!" (Illidan 1500, Crowler 5200)

Wiping the sweat off his forehead, Bastion said "This is one intense duel."

Nodding in agreement, Syrus added "It's like no matter what, Professor Illidan finds a way to hang on."

"He's hanging on like a pit bull to a steak dinner." Hasselberry commented.

Smiling, Jaden chimed in with "I told you guys this would be sweet. I think Professor Illidan still has a chance!"

"Get a clue you dork. Crowler's monster will be back next turn to finish him off, and then it'll be over." Chazz smartly commented.

"I don't know Chazz. So far, Professor Illidan has found a way to hang with Dr. Crowler. He's not giving any quarter to him." Alexis analyzed.

Marie only smirked at the students' conversation. "_I know you won't give up Illidan. Just hang on a little longer. I know you can do this._"

"_He is in a tough spot. It'll take a miracle for him to escape Crowler's grasp now._" Zane silently said to himself.

Back on the field, Illidan glanced at his deck. "_It's now or never. I need something here and now to win this duel. Here goes something!_"

Pulling a card from his deck, Illidan examined it and smiled. "I summon Magician's Valkyrie (1600/1800) to the field!"

A similar female mage that looked exactly like the mage destroyed the turn before appeared on the field, but this one took an offensive stance with her scepter raised in a fighting position.

"That pathetic creature again? Why bother!?" Crowler questioned.

Smirking, Illidan calmly replied "You'll see. For now though, Magician's Valkyrie, give Dr. Crowler a show! Attack him directly with Misfit Scepter Blast!"

Pointing her staff directly at Crowler, she released a green sphere of energy that rapidly approached him on a collision course.

Before it could hit, Illidan called out as he pointed to his face down card "Before my mage pummels you, I activate a trap card! Go Magician's Circle!"

A large green circle with four yellow like patterns and a question mark like symbol formed on top of an iceberg like structure above the field. It let off a brilliant glow, showing it was truly powerful.

"What is that!?" Crowler frantically asked.

Slightly smirking at Crowler's question, Illidan replied "It's my Magician's Circle."

"I know that! What does it do!?" snapped Crowler.

Lightly chuckling at his confusion, Illidan simply stated "It activates when a Spellcaster type monster attacks. Each of us now get to special summon one Spellcaster type monster from our decks to the field in attack mode so long as it has 2000 or less attack points."

Pulling his deck out, Illidan sorted through is deck till finally he found he card he wanted and slapped it down onto his Duel Disk, declaring "And the mage I want is none other than my good pal Silent Magician LV4 (1000/1000)!"

A small mage dressed in white robes and a blue spandex like material under the robes with pale skin, icy blue eyes, and long silver hair, and held a scepter in his hand appeared on the field.

"So, what Spellcaster you going to pick?" Illidan teasingly questioned.

Growling loudly, Crowler snapped back "I have none!"

Smirking lightly, Illidan replied "What a shame! Oh yeah, don't forget about my Magician's Valkyrie's attack."

As the small floating iceberg vanished, the green sphere that had stopped near Crowler came back to life, flying at a rapid speed towards him. He let out a small shriek as the blast struck him, making him slide backwards a bit.

"Silent Magician, why don't you strut your stuff. Hit him with Silent Scepter Blast!"

Nodding, the smaller mage leapt into the air and released a small white sphere of energy from his staff, which struck Crowler hard, causing him to slide backwards once again. This time, he fell to one knee as he came to a stop.

"I'll end with one card face down." (Illidan 1500, Crowler 2600)

"YOU WON'T MAKE A FOOL OF ME!" snarled Crowler as he angrily drew his card.

Wagging his finger, Illidan calmly stated "I'm not intending to, but there is something important you should know."

"WHAT!?" snapped Crowler.

Softly smirking, Illidan replied "You just triggered my Silent Magician's special ability. Each time you draw a card, he gains a Spell Counter, which also grants him an additional 500 attack points (1000 + 500 1500/1000)."

The small mage softly glowed white as his strength increased.

"NO MATTER!" Crowler angrily replied.

His expression then turned to arrogance, as he declared "Don't forget, during my Standby Phase, my Ancient Gear Golem returns, so come back to me my creature!"

A small black holed formed above the field, and slowly, the large mechanical giant fell from it. It landed solidly on the ground with a huge thud, shaking the entire arena.

"As you noticed, he has retained all 6000 of his attack points. That is due that Limiter Removal's effect didn't get cancelled out before he left. Now I shall use his ultimate power to finish you off! An…"

Pointing to a face down card, Illidan called out "Not so fast Crowler! I activate the trap card Waboku!"

Three female mages dressed in blue robes with strange hoods on their head appeared on the field. They held out their hands, seemingly sending out some kind of strange spell onto the field.

"Thanks to this card, even if our monsters battle, there will be zero damage done, plus the battling monsters won't be destroyed in battle. So go ahead, battle my mages if you wish, but it'll be pointless!"

Growling in frustration, Crowler muttered "I end my turn." (Illidan 1500, Crowler 2600)

"He bought himself another turn, but Professor Illidan can't keep going on like this." Syrus stated.

"It's all good Sy." Jaden calmly replied.

Looking on, Hasselberry said "Sam Hill, there is no way to beat that tin can Serg. Professor Illidan is finished."

"Without a doubt he is. I told you Slackers he wouldn't win." Chazz added with a grumpy tone.

"You guys are wrong. Professor Illidan isn't beat yet. I can see it in his eyes. He won't quit, and he still has a chance, I know it!" Jaden replied with confidence.

On the field, Illidan calmly drew his card and examined it. "_This should help._"

Looking up, he coolly said "I place once card face down. Next, I switch my Valkyrie to defense."

The female mage shifted from an attacking stance to a one kneed stance with her arms crossed. A hologram card image appeared below her as she took a knee.

"That's it for me." (Illidan 1500, Crowler 2600)

"Good, because you're finished this turn!" gloated Crowler as he drew his card.

Slightly smirking, Illidan called out "Don't forget, each time you draw a card, my mage gets stronger by 500 attack points (1500 + 500 2000/1000)."

The small white mage once again glowed white as his strength increased.

Shrugging it off, Crowler replied "A pointless gesture. And now, to finish this …"

"Not quite! I activate a trap card known as Spellbinding Circle!" Illidan declared.

A large circle, exactly like the one that had been on the iceberg earlier, appeared hovering above the field.

"This trap card will immobilize that Ancient Gear Golem of yours!"

The circle quickly crossed the field and slipped around the large machine creature. Soon enough, it totally ensnared the creature, leaving it struggling against the circle.

"What have you done to my monster!?" huffed Crowler.

Smirking, Illidan coolly stated "I placed my Spellbinding Circle on it. Thanks to that trap card, your monster can't attack or switch it's mode so long as my trap is active."

Infuriated, Crowler bellowed "That's cheating!"

"Feh, that's not cheating. It's called using a trap card." Illidan replied.

Further angered, Crowler growled "I'll place a card face down and end my turn." (Illidan 1500, Crowler 2600)

"Sam hill, he managed to disable that tin can!" exclaimed an excited Hasselberry.

Smiling, Jaden said "I told you guys!"

"Yeah, yeah, you told us he'd win, but all he's done is delay the inevitable." Chazz simply reiterated.

"I wouldn't bet on it. I'd say he has a plan, and I'm sure Dr. Crowler is so infuriated that he won't know what hit him." Jaden simply replied to Chazz.

Back on the field, Illidan drew his card and was about to say something when Crowler called out "Oh Illidan, I have a surprise for you! I activate my trap card, Dust Tornado! Thanks to this trap, I can destroy one spell or trap card on the field, so say goodbye to that trap of yours!"

A large brown tornado appeared on the field and began to circle the large machine creature. Soon enough, the tail of the tornado struck the glowing circle, instantly shattering it, causing Illidan's trap card image to shatter as well.

"My Ancient Gear Golem is free again, and next turn he'll finish you!" boasted Crowler.


	24. Chapter 24:  Mage and Machines, Pt 3

**Hello once more everyone! Well, this week has been a strange one. Yesterday, when I got to work, I made the discovery we had no phone or internet. We were pretty much dead in the water the whole day, so joy. Apparently, from what I've heard, someone stole 50 ft. of telephone wire right off of the poles for the copper. Eh, 50 ft. could be a stretch, but apparently there was some wire stolen, thus screwing everyone's phone lines. We got phone service back though last night around 8 or so, so I'm back to the grind again today.**

**Also, Tuesday evening, I went up to see my grandfather. He was out of ICU and in a step down room as they called it. He was doing wonderful from what I could see. He opened his eyes a good bit, and knew who I was. He smiled when I first came in, which made me rather happy. From what my grandmother told me, the speech therapist came around that morning and put a device up to his trake. He said a few words, which was cool. The nurse also told us while there he was moving his left leg, and even slightly gripped a bit with his left hand. There wasn't too much movement in his left hand, but there was some, which is still pretty good all things considered. He was to be moved to a rehab facility yesterday sometime, where he'll spend about 6 hours a day being worked on. Before I left, I said my goodbyes to him, and told him I loved him. He mouthed the words back, which kind of hit me hard. It was just sort of shocking to see him trying to say them back I guess. Anyways, I told him I'd come back this weekend, and went home. So, he's doing much better, but he still has a ways to go.**

**Ok, back to the story. Last time, the battle continued to rage on between Crowler and Illidan, with Illidan seemingly pulling ahead for a while, only to have Crowler make a small comeback. Now Illidan faces down the Ancient Gear Golem, Crowler's prized monster. Can he win this duel, or will Crowler become the victor in this fight?**

**It's once more time! That's right, it's review time!**

**ardee: It's all good. I know that feeling when the alerts don't work. The 6****th**** anniversary thing, heh, I don't care for it. It's over now, plus, it's just used as propaganda to spur on the war in Iraq, so I kind of ignore it. Eh, I won't get into it now. But anyways, about Crowler doing well, there is a reason. Last time, he fought both Illidan and Curry Mask, hence he had difficulties. This time, it's only Illidan, so he can focus more. Thanks for the comments.**

**Isis the Sphinx: LOL! I know, some just have big egos. The plot, it shall thicken, in time, lol.**

**Very Swampeh: Lol, yes, there are a few traps in Illidan's deck. Very true, Illidan is somewhat dancing circles around Crowler, but Crowler is still there and a threat. Heh, it may not take Illidan long to finish this one off, or he could go down in flames.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Heh, I thought about ending it this chapter, but there was some more going on, so I didn't. Besides, my chapters weren't as long back in the early chapters, so I kept them reasonably long enough. Thanks about my grandfather, and he is doing better.**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Yep, grandpa is getting better. In time I'm sure he'll hopefully fully recover, but it'll be a long road.**

**Alright, that's all for me this time. Thank you everyone for your reviews. Till next time, take care. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 24**

Simply shrugging, Illidan replied "No big deal to me. Now, as I was saying, I play the spell card Pot of Avarice, which allows me to send five monsters from my Graveyard to my deck. I get to shuffle them in and then draw two new cards. The five monsters I'll send back are Apprentice Magician, Magician of Faith, Cybernetic Magician, Chaos Command Magician, and Magician's Valkyrie."

Each of the five named monsters slowly slid out of the Graveyard slot. Once all five were there, Illidan took the five and pulled his deck out. He placed all five on top of his deck and began to shuffle. Once finished, he placed it back into the deck slot and drew two cards.

Smiling at the sight, he declared "You're finished Crowler!"

Bristling up, Crowler quickly shot back "We'll see about that! It's you who are finished!"

Shaking his head, Illidan replied "You'll see. First, I activate the spell card Level Up! This card allows me to sacrifice one LV monster on my field and play it's next form from my deck or hand. So, farewell Silent Magician LV4 and hello Silent Magician LV8 (3500/1000)!"

Slapping the card to his Duel Disk, the young white robed mage vanished, but a new mage, who looked like the younger one that had just vanished, but more mature and older appeared in his place. He had grown in height, and his body showed the many changes.

"Big deal! That mage still can't touch my Ancient Gear Golem!" squawked Crowler with pride at the fact.

Nodding, Illidan replied "True, he can't destroy your Ancient Gear Golem, but that's not what I'm trying to do with him."

"Then what are you trying to do? Lose on purpose!?" snapped a confused Crowler.

Smirking, Illidan replied "You don't know me well enough Crowler. I don't lose on purpose, and that's not my plan right now."

Pulling another card from his hand, he slapped it to his Duel Disk, saying "I summon Element Magician (1500/1200)!"

A young woman with blue long hair that was for the most part flowing freely, but semi bound up in small rolls on the side of her head, and wore a light green shirt that went to right above her stomach and a matching skirt that went above her knees and green gloves appeared onto the field. The air surrounding her had small traces of fog as well, giving her an even stranger appearance.

Raising an eyebrow, Crowler curiously asked "Why summon that creature? She's useless against my Ancient Gear Golem!"

Nodding in reply, Illidan replied "True, she can't compete with your monster, but she has another reason to be here."

"What, for comic relief?!" Crowler arrogantly joked.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan held out a card, saying "Nah, just so I can play this card. Ready to show him a magic trick Element Magician?"

The blue haired girl smiled and nodded. Seeing this, Illidan called out "I play the spell card Mystic Box! Prepare to be amazed Crowler!"

"I'll be amazed when your life points are depleted." Crowler gruffly replied.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan waved Crowler off, saying "Well, that trick won't be happening, but I do have another. Alright Element Magician, let's give him a show!"

Waving her hand in a show like manner, a puff of smoke appeared beside the young mage. As the smoke vanished, a grey box with gold trim, three sections with each having a blue question mark in the middle and a small patch of red surrounding it, appeared onto the field.

"What is that for?!" questioned Crowler.

Smirking, Illidan replied "You sure ask a lot of questions. Oh yeah, that's not the only box to be on the field. Take a look. Your monster is getting into the act also!"

Looking over, Crowler shrieked as he watched a large box that was similar to the one the mage was standing beside appeared around his machine monster.

"LEAVE MY ANCIENT GEAR GOLEM OUT OF YOUR TRICK!" demanded Crowler.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan shook his head, wagging a finger, saying "Now, now, don't be that way. Besides, we needed a volunteer from your field, and you only had one. Time for the fun part. Element Magician, if you please."

The young female mage nodded in reply. The door to the box beside her opened, and she quickly stepped in. Immediately, the door closed up, locking the young mage in.

"Watch carefully, because you might miss the trick." Illidan commented as he snapped his fingers.

Six swords, three on the right side of the box and three on the left, suddenly appeared in mid-air, hovering just above the box. They then pointed down at the box and rained down on it, with each sliding into a section of the box.

Crowler's mouth gaped open in shock, saying "What is wrong with you!? You just skewered your own monster!"

Smirking, Illidan replied "Are you sure?"

Slowly, the door on the skewered box opened, revealing a monster card.

"HOW DID MY ANCIENT GEAR GOLEM GET IN THERE!?" screamed Crowler in complete shock.

Smirking once more, Illidan replied "That's part of the trick. Oh, and speaking of the trick!"

The door on the larger box opened, with the blue haired mage jumping out, saying "Tada!" In a puff of smoke, the two boxes vanished, leaving Crowler with his mouth wide open.

After finally waking up from the shock, Crowler screamed "WHAT DID YOU DO!?"

Chuckling, Illidan replied "Pretty easy really. My spell card allowed me to pick one monster on each of our fields. Since you only had one, I had to pick your Ancient Gear Golem. Of course, I picked my Element Magician. As you saw, our monsters were then put in boxes. How they switched sides, well, that's part of the trick, so can't tell you that. Anyways, the consequences are quite evident. Your monster was destroyed, while I donated you my Element Magician. Not too shabby if I say so myself."

Crowler didn't reply, for he was so infuriated, he had his teeth grinding loudly. Steam almost seemed to form above his head as he growled loudly and finally let out a primitive roar.

"HOW DARE YOU DO THIS TO ME! DO YOU KNOW WHO I AM!? I AM DR. VELLIAN CROWLER, HEADMASTER OF OBELISK BLUE DORM! I WILL NOT BE EMBARRASED BY A SLIFER RED SLACKER!" roared Crowler with extreme anger.

"Actually, I'm a Slifer Red Headmaster Slacker. Try and get it right." Illidan chided with a smirk.

Crowler about blew his stack at the comment, but Illidan only smirked once again, saying "At any rate, this duel is over. I switch my Magician's Valkyrie into attack mode."

The female mage with chestnut colored hair stood up from her one knee position and took an offensive stance. She smiled and winked at Crowler, seemingly saying what was about to happen.

"I'm sorry for this Element Magician, but I have to do it. Magician's Valkyrie, attack Element Magician with Misfit Scepter Blast!"

The young female mage with chestnut colored hair nodded and pointed her staff at the young blue haired mage. Smiling, the blue haired mage nodded, awaiting the attack. Her comrade smiled back at her and released a green sphere of energy from her staff. The blast struck the blue haired mage head on, easily destroying her in a green haze.

"Let's wrap this up Silent Magician. Attack directly with Silent Scepter Blast!"

Nodding, the white robed mage leapt into the air and aimed his staff at a panicking Crowler.

"YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO ME!" screamed Crowler.

The mage only smirked and fired a blast of white energy straight at flailing Crowler, who was struck hard, knocking him backwards five feet. The remainder of his life points quickly drained away, causing the mages on the field to vanish, not before the one in white gave Illidan a curt nod.

Smiling back at him, Illidan returned the nod, and noted the female mage giving him a wink. The two soon vanished, and the Duel Disks powered down.

Seeing the duel was over, the Chancellor cleared his voice and stood, moving quickly to the ring, saying "The winner of this duel, Professor Illidan Stormrage!"

The entire arena stood and cheered on the winner. Meanwhile, Bonaparte was quick to run to Crowler, whom was still lying on the ground.

"What is wrong with you!? You had this duel won and threw it away!" reprimanded Bonaparte.

Glaring at him, Crowler quickly snapped back "Oh shut up!"

He was soon standing and glared daggers at Illidan, who was coming towards him. Not even wanting to bother, Crowler quickly turned on his heals and left the stage in a huff.

Letting out a small sigh, Illidan watched Crowler leave, but felt a hand on his shoulder. Turning, he noted it was the Chancellor, who said "Don't worry about him. He'll cool off eventually."

Nodding, Illidan turned back to the crowd, which was still cheering. Smiling, he gave a friendly wave at them.

"I told you guys he'd pull it out." Jaden said with a smile.

Folding his arms over his chest as usual, Chazz simply replied "Yeah, whatever."

"That was an excellent duel. Professor Illidan showed great patience, and plenty of strategy. I think he has his deck set up so that if a problem arises, he can always compensate. That's the mark of an excellent duelist." Bastion commented with enthusiasm.

"It's like nothing bothers him at all. He reminds me so much of my brother." Syrus added.

Smiling, Hasselberry said "He's a regular cool customer, but seems to be having fun at the same time. That's the most important thing in the world, right Serge?"

Jaden only lightly nodded, while Alexis replied "This year will be an interesting one, for sure."

On the field, Illidan only smiled as he saw Marie make her way into the ring. She rushed towards him, and he picked her up, swinging her around in a hug.

"Great job!" she said once they stopped spinning.

Giving her a quick peck on the lips, Illidan simply replied "Thanks. I hope that helps them."

Smiling back, she nodded, whispering "I think it already has."

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At the Slifer Dorm after the duel, all the students gathered in the common area, all cheering on their Headmaster as he returned. Illidan only smiled and walked towards the front so everyone could hear him.

Once he made it, he raised his hands, silently asking for their attention. The students immediately quieted, showing they were intent on hearing Illidan.

"Students, the duel I was in tonight is one I hope you all will remember. I hope I proved something to all of you, that even though we are the lowest ranked dorm, that doesn't mean we can't win against the highest ranked dorm. Sure, the Obelisk Blue Dorm has many students who are supposed to be the best of the best from Dueling Prep School and were able to buy their way in, but that doesn't mean they're better than any of you."

Taking a moment to look over the students, Illidan continued with "A duel can always go either way. It's not about who knows the most about the game. It's about the person who refuses to quit and has the desire to push on, no matter how bad the duel looks. And it's about having fun as well. So, even when a person loses, either way, they had a good game and had some fun also."

Looking over the group again, he smiled and said "Anyways, I hope that you all know now that the Obelisk Blue and Ra Yellow Dorms are not invincible. If you duel a student from either one, don't feel intimidated. You have as good a chance to win the duel as the other student. Everyone here maybe a Slifer Red Dorm member, but the coat don't matter. Coats don't rank your true dueling skills or passion for the game. So don't feel afraid of the other dorms. Show this school that the Slifer Red Dorm is truly as strong as any of the others!"

That said, all of the students cheered loudly and applauded Illidan. Marie and Zane both smiled happily as they applauded also.

"_He sure knows how to give them courage. I hope this is the push they all needed in order to get them to face their fears of the other dorms. I know if the students face any outside dorms, they'll need to gather their wits about them. Still, I think this has truly helped them._" Marie quietly thought.

Smiling, Zane mentally thought "_This duel he has won has given more confidence than anything else could have. Not to mention, I've learned Illidan is truly a remarkable duelist. His dueling skills are semi-similar to my own, although he shows more emotion while dueling. He will truly be a tough opponent when I one day duel him._"

The students soon enough after the speech left and went to their rooms, leaving Illidan, Marie, and Zane behind. The three closed up the common area and proceeded to the home behind the dorm. Each proceeded to lounge in the living room, resting comfortably.

"Excellent duel tonight Illidan." Zane commented casually.

Nodding in reply, Illidan simply said "Thanks. I hope that helps them."

"I bet it will. Illidan, you proved to the students that the color of your jacket isn't what matters." Marie stated with kindness in her voice.

"Yes, I believe you've given them hope, and that is something they need if we are to win this Dorm Cup." Zane added.

Smiling at the two, Illidan nodded, saying "True, they need a reason to fight. I know the students can win the Dorm Cup if they summon up their courage."

With an agreeing nod, Zane stood, saying "It's late, and we have class tomorrow. I shall take my leave now."

Both Illidan and Marie stood and bid Zane good night. As Zane left, both smiled, embracing one another.

"Illidan, you were great tonight."

Lightly blushing, Illidan simply replied "I only did what I always do. Go out, duel hard and have fun."

Placing a gentle hand on his cheek, Marie smiled, saying "Yes, that's what you always do. I think what you did by beating Crowler will set a great example for the students."

Leaning into her touch, Illidan lightly nodded, saying "Yeah, I think it will help them. They know now the Blue and Yellow dorms aren't invincible. I just hope they give dueling either dorm a try."

Smiling kindly at him, she pulled in closer and kissed Illidan gently, but made it a short kiss. Walking away towards the bedroom, Illidan lightly chuckled and followed, turning the lights off as he left the room.

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"_She will die slowly and painfully unless you deliver Yami to me. You have till the end of tomorrow, and that is all. At the end of the tomorrow, she will die unless Yami is brought to me. Make no mistake Illidan, I will let it happen!_"

Hearing those words, Illidan instantly sat up in bed, once again sweating profusely and slightly shaking. Putting his head in his hands, he took a deep breath and tried to calm down.

Seeing Marie was still sleeping, he quietly crept out of bed and went outside. Looking up at the night sky, he took a deep breath, trying hard to find his calmness once again.

"Why are these memories surfacing now?" he asked softly.

Sighing deeply, Illidan stared at a constellation his father had shown him many years before. Smiling softly, Illidan remembered the day his father had showed it to him.

"_Son, do you see those stars there?_" Shando asked his son.

A young Illidan of age three looked up at the night sky and nodded, making Shando smile. "_Those stars form a constellation known as The Phoenix._"

Frowning, Illidan asked "_What is a phoenix?_"

Lightly chuckling at his son, Shando ruffed up his hair and said "_It is a mythical bird of fire, said to rise from the ashes no matter what you did to it. They are also supposed to be birds of hope, or at least I have always thought of them that way._"

Looking back up at the sky, Shando softly smiled, saying "_The night I met your mother, we saw that very constellation. Every time I see it, I think back to how our love burned as brightly as that constellation, or as a phoenix itself. And like the phoenix, our love is eternal, and will always rise up from the ashes._"

Tears formed in Shando's eyes as he put an arm around his son's shoulders, saying "_Even with her gone Illidan, our love continues on in the form of you._"

Little Illidan only snuggled in closer to his father, embracing him closer. Shando finally dried his tears, and smiled softly, saying "_Remember Illidan, that even though a person maybe gone, like the phoenix, their love will always be with you. It is something that cannot be destroyed._"

Coming out of his memory, Illidan softly smiled once more and stared up at the sky. "Father, I'll never forget you or your love. Even though our time together was short, I won't let my memories of you die. I promise, I will always remember you and your love, and like the phoenix, that memory will never die."

Feeling much calmer, Illidan turned to leave the balcony when he stopped. For some reason, he felt as if someone was watching him. Turning back around, he looked off into the distance, but saw nothing.

Shrugging, he mumbled "It must be nothing."

Going back inside, Illidan climbed back into bed, oblivious that he had been wrong. In the distance, a figure stood on watching and smirking evilly underneath his hood.

"You will cooperate this time Illidan, or die." the figure said aloud.


	25. Chapter 25: Beauty and The Chazz, Pt 1

**Hey there everybody! This past weekend wasn't too bad. Saturday, I ended up helping my dad out on the farm all day. Sunday, I went and saw my grandfather, who is doing pretty well. They sat him up in a wheelchair for a few hours, which is pretty good they said, especially since he had been bedridden for the last few weeks. He's slowly doing better and better each time, and he's still rather responsive. He wiggled his left foot some while I was there, showing that he still had movement in it, which is great. I'm due to go up there again Wednesday, so I'll find out how he's doing again.**

**Last time, Illidan finally beat Crowler with a cute trick at the end, causing Crowler to take off in a huff. Later on, Illidan woke up from a horrible dream/vision of his past of someone he seemed to have known. He found comfort in his memories of his father and went back to bed, only to have the feeling someone is watching. Who is this stranger that keeps watching, and how does he know Shando, Illidan's father? And more importantly, what could he possibly want from Illidan?**

**Alright, now that that's out of the way, it's time once more for the reviews!**

**ardee: LOL! Yes, I keep leaving hints of someone at the end of my chapters. Possibly a villain, or possibly a friend? Heh, you'll find out soon enough, lol. Thanks about the combo. I liked it a bit too, so I thought I'd use it. Yeah, I've done a good bit of Inuyasha one-shots/songfics, and honestly, I have an idea for an Inuyasha full story. It's call **_**Another**_**, but it's waiting in the wings for me till I finish up this story. I only have a bit left to write, but I just have yet to finish. Thanks for the vote of confidence that you think I could do it well. Thanks again for the comments.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Lol, yes, no one saw that one coming, hehe. Thanks for the comments. Yes, Mystic Box is underestimated. It's a great card, but only if played right. Yeah, this new contender is definitely a mysterious one. And he seems to know Illidan from five millennia ago, which makes things even more troubling. Plus he knew Illidan's father. Thanks about grandpa. He's getting better all the time.**

**Very Swampeh: Yep, he beat Crowler, lol. Heh, reincarnated buddy of Illidan's? could be I suppose. Good possibility, but you never know.**

**PKC: Lol, nice review.**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Yeah, I'm glad he's out of ICU also.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thank you. Yeah, he's doing much better, thankfully. Heh, the memories are just memories at the end. Illidan was just having a nightmare about the past. His memories of his father were just something to comfort him, hence they really have nothing to do with the whoever it is watching if that's what you thought. But yes, the memories, the stranger, all of it, will be explained in due time.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Yep, more hints, hehe. Glad you liked this chapter.**

**Ok, that's it for the reviews. Thank you everyone who has submitted one. All of you have been wonderful so far, and I thank each of you for continuing to support me and my writing. For those who haven't submitted a review, feel free to, or PM me if you'd rather. I'll always answer either way. In the meantime, I hope everyone enjoys this next chapter, for things are about to get intense. For now, later!**

**Chapter 25**

The next day, right around noon, Illidan and Marie headed back to the dorm to begin lunch as usual. When they arrived, they found they had a visitor waiting.

She was a kind looking lady with brown hair up in a pony tail that came to her mid-back, but it sat over her right shoulder. Her eyes were kind looking with a deep brown coloring. She wore gold hoop earrings, and had a bit of a semi-large body build. Her clothes consisted of a pink shirt with a blue apron.

Both immediately noticed she was holding Pharaoh in her arms, gently stroking his head.

"_That cat better not have done something he'll regret!_" Marie thought as a flash of anger crossed her eyes.

"Hello, may we help you?" Illidan kindly asked, trying hard to ignore Marie's slight flare up of anger.

Smiling up at both, the lady sat Pharaoh down and stood, dusting off her pants. "Hello. I think so."

Walking over, she offered her hand, saying "My name is Dorothy. I operate the card store up in the main building."

Accepting it, Illidan shook it, saying "Ah yes, I remember the students, particularly Jaden and Syrus, mentioning your name. My name is Illidan, and this is my wife, Marie."

Marie gladly shook her hand as well, and Dorothy smiled at the two. "It's nice to meet both of you."

Nodding, Illidan asked "So, what brings you here?"

Smiling back at the two, she said "Well, the Chancellor contacted me today and let me know that he wanted me to take over the cooking duties for the two of you."

Raising an eyebrow, Illidan asked "You mean, for all meals?"

Curtly nodding in reply, Dorothy replied "Yes, he asked for me to take over completely. Seems he didn't realize that the Slifer Dorm had no cook, and didn't find out till today, so he quickly acted on it and sent me over."

Lightly chuckling, Illidan smiled and said "That's good. Our cooking the meals was slightly inconvenient."

"Well, I'm just glad I can help. Anyways, if it's alright with you, I'll start today."

Nodding with approval, Illidan replied "Of course, that's fine with me. How about you Marie?"

Slightly smirking in triumph over being released from cooking, Marie replied happily "Yes, of course, you are more than welcome to take over today."

"Thank you. I hope to see the two of you quite often." Dorothy said with a smile as she walked off into the cafeteria.

Turning towards the back of the dorm, Illidan and Marie could hardly keep themselves from running with excitement. Finally arriving at the house, the two let out happy yells.

"WE DON'T HAVE TO COOK ANYMORE FOR THE STUDENTS!" Marie happily let out.

Smiling at her, Illidan nodded, saying "This is great! Now we have more time for other things."

Giving Illidan a seductive look, Marie asked "What other things would that be?"

"Not those things, although they are included I suppose." Illidan said with a sly voice.

Smirking, Marie turned to leave, but Illidan turned her around, pressing her up against the wall and pinning her arms above her head while kissing her deeply. After a few moments, the two came up for air, each breathing hard.

Seeing a glint of mischief in his eyes, Marie sexily asked "What do you think you're doing?"

Grinning evilly, he picked her up bridal style and rushed towards the bedroom, kicking the door shut behind him.

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A week and a half later, on a Thursday, school was still continuing. The students seemed to adjust well to their teachers, as did the teachers to the students. Many younger students finally found their niches as well, with the middle class and upper classmen settling in.

It was nearly time for class to let out for Tag Team Dueling, with many of the students mostly following along with the teachers.

Noting the time, Illidan stopped and looked at Marie, saying "Well, I suppose it is time we reveal to you all who the teams are."

All the students perked up, curious to who they would be paired with. Seeing the excited looks, Illidan walked over to the computer that had a projector attached and brought up a file he had made for this.

"We based most of the pairings off of many things. One being the compatibility of the teams, such as how well you all will get along with one another. Another one was your dueling skill level, plus we sort of did it by dorm as well. Some were also based off of randomness as well, but for the most part, we selected the teams based on how we felt a team would do." Marie explained.

Finally bringing the file up, Illidan said "Here are the pairings for all of the teams."

The screen lit up, showing all the pairings. All of the students immediately began talking amongst themselves, some shocked at the pairings, while others finding them quite good.

"No, please not her!" whined Bastion.

Smirking at his behavior, Mariah heatedly replied from a few seats above him "Hey, don't complain! It's not like I want to be with someone who thinks they're smarter than everyone else here!"

A few seats down, Ino screamed "I don't want to be billboard brow's partner!"

Growling with white eyes, Sakura screamed back "Not like I want be partners with you either Ino-pig!"

Elsewhere, Syrus groaned, saying "Great, I'm stuck with the military wanna-be…"

Glaring at Syrus, Hasselberry replied "Not like you're any kind of prize yourself. I wish I was partners with Jaden instead, but I have no choice."

A few seats away, both Ed and Al smiled at one another, with Al saying "Brother, I can't believe it, we're actually partners!"

Nodding, Ed replied "We'll most definitely blow away the competition with our alchemy."

Near the middle of the rows, Chazz yelled out "NO WAY I AM TEAMING UP WITH THAT SLACKER!"

"Ah, come on Chazz, we'll be a great team." Jaden said, trying hard to coax Chazz into calming down.

Glaring at him, Chazz replied "NO WAY!"

Turning to Illidan and Marie, he yelled "I want a new partner!"

Sighing, Illidan replied calmly "We won't redo the partners. They are set as is."

Growling loudly, Chazz stood up and started walking down the stairs towards the teaching podium. Arriving, he once again said "I want a new partner!"

Groaning at the fact that this was turning into an argument, Illidan closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. Reopening his eyes, he once again calmly said "I'm sorry Chazz, but you have a partner. You need to learn to work with Jaden."

"Unacceptable! That Slacker will slow me down! The Chazz prefers to work alone!" Chazz arrogantly replied. His eyes then softened, as he said "Although I would accept Alexis as a partner if I had my choice."

Sighing once more, Illidan replied "Chazz, it's not happening. Jaden will be your partner, regardless of what you say or do."

"I refuse to accept that!" Chazz bantered back.

"SHUT IT!"

Everyone was surprised to hear these words. All eyes fell upon Marie, who had her fist clenched. Glaring daggers at Chazz, she added "We set up the teams, and they're staying the way they are, and no brat is going to change that!"

Shocked at her outburst and taken a back, Chazz soon decided not to back down, saying "I want a new partner! Jaden isn't even close to my level!"

Infuriated, Marie growled loudly, but suddenly calmed down by closing her eyes. Reopening them, she smirked evilly, saying "Chazz, I think I know a way to settle this."

Confused, Chazz asked gruffly "Yeah?"

"A duel." Marie stated coolly.

Chazz lightly chuckled, saying "That's your big idea? Well, it's your funeral."

Smirking confidently, Marie said "We'll see about that. Here are the terms. If you win, you pass the class and don't have to come anymore."

"Uh, Marie…" Illidan began.

"I mean it Illidan!" Marie growled at Illidan, who put his hands up in surrender.

Smirking at this, she continued with "But if you lose, you have to be Jaden's partner, with no gripes about it!"

Not even taking the time to think about it, Chazz said "I accept those terms, so let's throw down!"

Immediately, the two began to fetch their Duel Disks. Illidan walked up behind Marie, asking "Are you sure about this? If he wins, then…"

"Then I'll be to blame and I'll fix the problem. Don't worry, I have no intentions on losing. I'll take care of this." Marie replied with a small wink.

Sighing, Illidan cleared the stage for the two, giving each enough room. Once the stage was cleared, he took a seat on the front row.

Both Chazz and Marie stared one another down, each intent on proving their way was better. In unison, they said "Game on!"

Their Duel Disks both activated with both extending, which caused each to draw their first five cards.

Picking up her sixth card, Marie said "Ladies first."

Pulling out a card from her hand, she said "I summon Bountiful Artemis (1600/1700) in defense."

A white creature with a pointed end for bottom part of it's body, that curved outwards like a vase, that came up to a set of shoulders covered with a purple flowing cape and long mechanical looking three fingered hands appeared. On it's back were two large mechanical wings that were hollow. Lastly, it's head was white and looked more like a robots head than anything. The creature took a hunched over stance and crossed it's arms.

"To end, I'll throw this down for later. Your go!" (Marie 8000, Chazz 8000)

Drawing his card quickly, Chazz smirked, saying "Time to Chazz you up!"

Looking at the card, he smirked once more, saying "You're in for a rough ride! I start by summoning my X-Head Cannon (1800/1500)!"

A blue machine like creature with some yellow that floated on a spiked sphere appeared. It had twin cannon barrels sticking out of it's chest, and had two large arms.

"It's not over yet, for I activate the spell card Frontline Base! Thanks to this spell card, I get to special summon one level four or lower Union Monster from my hand once per a turn, so I play Y-Dragon Head (1500/1600)!"

A red machine dragon appeared on the field with a low mechanical roar. It straightened it's large red wings, showing off it's impressive wingspan.

"I'm not through yet, for I activate the spell card Quick Summon, which let's me summon another level four or lower monster from my hand, so I pick Z-Metal Tank (1500/1300)!"

A large yellow and blue tank like creature with large tank tracks appeared onto the field. It let out a small moan, much like the other machine creatures.

"I now remove the three of them from play in order to merge them, creating the XYZ-Dragon Cannon (2800/2600)!"

All three creatures shot off into the sky with their thrusters roaring. Slowly, the red dragon detached it's wings and pulled in it's feet as the blue and gold robot struck it's large sphere into a slot on it's back. The two then descended till they docked with the yellow and blue tank creature, forming a large machine creature where three once stood.

"Scared yet!?"

Looking bored, Marie yawned, saying "Oh, are you done yet?"

Infuriated by Marie's behavior, Chazz gruffly said "You'd better get scared, cause I'm still not done!"

"The only thing I'm scared of is you'll never finish your turn today!" Marie sarcastically replied.

Growling in anger from the comment, Chazz said "I'll show you! I activate my monster's special ability! By sending a card to my Graveyard, I can destroy one card on your field. I'll send this, my Enchanting Fitting Room to the Grave, meaning I can now destroy that monster of yours!"

The turrets of the machine monster began to glow light blue as it powered up. Soon enough, it released a shot of blue energy from each turret at the white winged creature. The blast easily smashed the creature, leaving Marie wide open.

"Hey Teach, let's see you comment on this! Attack her directly XYZ-Dragon Cannon with Cannon Burst!"

The five ports with guns on the machine creature began glowing lightly yellow with power as the machine monster took aim. At long last, after powering up, the creature released the five blasts of fire power at Marie, who only stood strong and smirked.

In a chastising voice, Marie said "Chazz, you should learn to check your target. I activate the trap card Negate Attack, which does as it says, negates your attack! Plus it ends your Battle Phase!"

A black hole appeared in front of Marie, swallowing up all of the blasts. Soon enough, the hole closed, leaving Marie completely unharmed.

Growling with frustration, Chazz muttered "Just go already."

Picking up a new card, Marie smirked at it, saying with chastisement in her voice "Now, now Chazz, don't be angry. After all, we have a long duel to go yet. Well, maybe we do. I play Quick Summon, so like you, I get to summon a new monster, so come on out Kaiser Seahorse (1700/1650)!"

A blue and purple creature with rough scaly armor, a scaly shield, and a lance in hand appeared onto the field. It only stared at the machine creature, seemingly not intimidated.

"Next, I sacrifice my Kaiser Seahorse. By the way, when Kaiser Seahorse is sacrificed, it counts as two tributes for…"

"Yeah, yeah, I know. It counts as two sacrifices for Light attribute monsters!" grumbled Chazz.

Smirking back, Marie nodded, saying "Yep, that's it, so I sacrifice Kaiser Seahorse for my Majestic Mech – Goryu (2900/1800)!"

The scaly creature immediately vanished from the field in a beam of white light, making room for a white winged dragon like creature. It had many bands of white on it's body, with it's mid-section, which was close to it's head, having a pair of metal wings attached. A majority of it's body appeared to be golden sparkling energy, which was somehow retained in the white bands.

Chazz could only stare at the creature, with a slight bit of frustration appearing on his face. Seeing this, Marie seized the moment, saying "Goryu, attack that scrapheap with Golden Radiance!"

The white and gold dragon like creature softly roared and raised it's head to stare at the machine monster. Opening it's jaws, the white and gold dragon released a stream of golden energy at the machine creature, striking it hard, causing a large explosion.

"I'll lay this down on the field and let you take over." (Marie 8000, Chazz 7900)

The entire could only gasp at the duel so far. Everyone was in complete shock at the fast pace action, unsure how to react.

"Sam Hill, Chazz had a strong monster, but in a single turn, lost it!" exclaimed a still shocked Hasselberry.

Looking at the white and gold dragon, Syrus added "And that thing has all of Chazz's monsters beat, well, except one who has enough defense to stop it. But still, that's not much."

Jaden had a goofy grin on his face, saying "This is going to be exciting guys. I can't wait to see how this works out!"

Illidan only smirked at the students. "_Marie has truly gotten better and better throughout the years. Hard to believe she's the same duelist I once thought would be a pushover. I learned then and there she wasn't. She is one of my toughest rivals, yet is my best friend, lover, wife, and soul-mate. Hard to believe that two people with such fierce dueling spirits could ever get along, let alone fall in love._"

On the field, Chazz drew his next card but growled in frustration, saying "Just go!" (Marie 8000, Chazz 7900)

Without a moment's hesitation, Marie drew, saying "Goryu, direct attack with Golden Radiance!"

The gold and white dragon let out small roar and released a large stream of golden energy at Chazz, who crossed his arms to ward off the attack. The energy slammed into him hard, knocking him into the air. He landed about three feet back from where he started on the ground hard. After a moment, he stood up, with a look of anger on his face.

Slightly smirking at her achievement, Marie said "Why don't you have a go at it Chazz." (Marie 8000, Chazz 5000)

Drawing his card, he said "I place a card face down. That's all." (Marie 8000, Chazz 5000)

"Man, Chazz is still wide open!" Syrus said with some concern.

Looking on, Jaden replied "He'll be fine, for now. Still, he needs to put some kind of defense up."

"Yeah, like anything." Alexis remarked.

Back on the field, Marie drew once more, and slapped the card to her Duel Disk, saying "I summon my Layard the Liberator (1400/1500)."

A six armed creature with no legs, but a small balancing needle point, with golden wings, a white body except where it's shoulders, elbows, and balls of it's palms joined together were a shade of dark pink. It's head looked like a robots round doomed head with a single eye.

"Layard, direct attack with Six Handed Angel Strike!"

The white and dark pink creature lurched forward at incredible speed. Immediately, it was upon Chazz, and pulled back all six of it's arms. In a fury, the fairy released punch after punch, striking Chazz several times, causing Chazz to cry out in some pain. Finally, the pummeling ended, leaving a weakly standing Chazz panting hard.

"Come now Chazz, I thought you were going to beat me?" Marie teased.

Glaring at Marie, he roared "I WILL beat you!"

Teasing him more, Marie replied "Oh really? Well, then maybe this attack will help you think on how you're going to beat me! Goryu, hit him with Golden Radiance!"

The gold and white dragon let out a soft roar and took aim. In a flash of gold, a stream of energy went flying towards Chazz, who only crossed his arms in front of his body to block the strike. The blast knocked him backwards to the ground, leaving him panting hard.

Slowly, he rose up from the ground, with Marie saying "Well, I see you do have some fight left in you." (Marie 8000, Chazz 700)


	26. Chapter 26:  Beauty and The Chazz, Pt 2

**Why hello again everyone! This week has been a bit trying. Work has been fun, while at the same time hard. I've gotten lots done, but still, there is so much to do, hehe. Plus, between trying to spend time with my mate, helping my dad out with stuff, and visiting my grandfather, time seems to just fly by and there is none left over. Oh well, hence why it's called life, hehe. Btw, in case anyone is curious, my grandfather is doing pretty well. I saw him last night, but time I got there, he was wore out and already asleep, lol. I stayed with him a few hours though, and he woke up a few times. Once he opened his eyes and smiled at me. Other than that, he's been doing well.**

**Last time, Dorthy took over the cooking for Illidan and Marie, who were ever so happy. Also, they handed out who would be partners for the tag teams, in which Chazz totally disputed. Enraged by Chazz's refusal, Marie decided to duel him and make him stick with his new partner. So far, Marie has literally destroyed Chazz, but can she keep up this assault, or will she get Chazzed Up!?**

**Ok, time once again for reviews, hurray!**

**Very Swampeh: Yep, the teams are interesting and should make things fun. Yeah, I figured I'd throw a curve in about Chazz refusing to team up with Jaden, only to have Marie attempt to make him. Never know, Chazz may make a comeback and win… or not, lol. Yes, everyone will be much happier now that Dorthy is running the kitchen, hehe.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Indeed he is. He's burnt toast, lol. Yeah, I am pretty lucky to have both sets of grandparents living. Cool that school is going well, and that you like your early classes. Heh, I sometimes miss the days of college, but then I remember that I like my job really well. Thanks for the comments.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Yep, he's getting beaten up pretty badly. Never know, Chazz could comeback and win, but like I said earlier, maybe not also, hehe. Thanks about my grandpa.**

**Alright, that's all of the reviews. I'd like to thank the person who added me to their favorite authors. I encourage everyone to post a review or PM me if you have comments or questions. I'll try to answer them always, that is if it doesn't ruin the plot or whatever, lol. But thank you everyone for your continuous support. It helps motivate me to keep writing more and more. You guys enjoy this chapter. Till next time.**

**Chapter 26**

"My move." Chazz huffed out as his breathing finally evened.

Drawing his new card, he stared at it for a moment before smirking great big. "You'll pay for those insults and all those attacks, starting right now! I play the spell Graceful Charity, meaning three new cards for me, so long as I toss out two when I'm done!"

Picking up three new cards, Chazz smirked once more and let out a low chuckle. At last, he picked out two cards, saying as he showed them to Marie "I'm throwing out Chthonian Alliance and Ojamagic"

Slowly, the two cards slid into his Graveyard slot. Smirking again, he continued. "By the way, when Ojamagic is sent to the Grave, it's effect goes off. I get to search my deck and add the three Ojama Brothers to my hand! Welcome aboard boys!"

Searching his deck quickly, he pulled out all three monsters and placed them in his left hand. Once he had placed his deck back in it's slot, three barely visible creatures appeared floating around Chazz's shoulders.

"_Thanks boss!_" the yellow one said.

"_We're going to show her now!_" the black one added.

"_No one messes with our boss and gets away with it!_" added the green one.

Slightly annoyed, Chazz whispered "Shut it you stooges!"

Getting back to what he was doing, Chazz called out "Now it's time I play this spell! I activate Ojama Get Ride! Thanks to this little baby, I can ditch my Ojamas to the Graveyard and special summon in defense mode three level four or lower Machine type monsters from my deck!"

"_DON'T DO IT BOSS!_" the three creatures cried out in unison.

Glancing in their direction, Chazz quietly said "Sorry boys, but I got to. See you around!"

That said, he placed all three Ojama cards in the Graveyard slot, which slowly sucked all three in. Pulling his deck out once more, Chazz picked three cards and showed them to Marie.

"I play Beetron-1 Kabutop (1700/1400), Beetron-2 Kawagaturbo (1500/1800), and Beetron-3 Spider Base (1000/2000) to the field!"

A yellow and black like bug-machine creature with four legs and two wheels on it's back side, plus two steel wings and an odd horn like head appeared first. Next, a green scissor mouthed mechanical bug with small horn on it's forehead appeared. Finally, a red spider like creature that stood rather tall and had two levels of legs appeared.

Seemingly unimpressed, Marie commented "Those three aren't much to brag about Chazz."

Chuckling, Chazz replied "You're right, separately they aren't much of a threat, but together…"

Marie slightly guessed where this was going, and asked "I guess they form together like your previous monster?"

Nodding in response, Chazz replied "Correct! Beetrons, form up and create Assault Beetle Cannon (2400/2800)!"

The yellow and black creature began spinning it's wheels, causing smoke and rubber to fly. Soon, it let off it's brakes and ran straight towards the green bug machine. Using it like a ramp, it leapt into the air and landed onto the red spider like creature. Slowly, a locking sound was heard as the two merged. Not to be left out, the green creature leapt into the air with thrusters and attached itself to the back end of the black and yellow machine, making it look like a large tail with scissor sticking out.

"Uh, Chazz, I hate to tell you, but your monster isn't as strong as my Goryu." Marie said with a bored expression while playing with her hair. She had one finger wrapped up in it, mostly wrapping it around her finger.

Lightly chuckling, Chazz replied "Well, wait till you get a load of this! I activate my trap card, Ojama Delta Brief! This trap card let's me return my three Ojama Brothers to my field, which I'll place in defense, so welcome back Ojama Yellow (0/1000), Ojama Green (0/1000), and Ojama Black (0/1000)!"

Slowly, the three monster cards slid back out from the Graveyard and Chazz placed all three horizontally on his Duel Disk. Three creatures, one yellow, one green, and one black appeared. Each had on pink bikini underwear, and all three looked rather odd. The yellow one had antenna like eyes and big red lips. The green one had one eye and a purple tongue sticking out. The black one had two eyes, a large nose, and a rather plump stomach.

"_Thanks boss!_" the three said at once.

Smirking, Chazz said "Don't thank me yet boys! I have a job for you."

Pulling the last card from his hand, he turned it to face Marie, saying "I activate the spell Ojama Delta Hurricane! Put her through the spin cycle boys!"

The three creatures all leapt into the air, with them each saying their color. Finally, the three put their butts together, with each bent over.

In unison, the three called out "_Ojama Delta Hurricane!_"

That said, the three began spinning rapidly in a circle. They then headed towards Marie's field. A small loop was created by the three widening the space between them. Slowly, they descended upon Marie's field, making a circle around her monsters and spell/trap card zone. Suddenly, an explosion happened within the circle, destroying the large gold and white dragon, along with the six armed creature and the face down card.

"My field! What did you just do!?" Marie asked with great concern.

Chuckling as the three creatures landed back on his field, Chazz replied "Whenever I use Ojama Delta Hurricane with the three Ojama Brothers on the field, they destroy all spell, trap, and monster cards on your field. In essence, they take it all from you!"

Hearing the soft growl from Marie, Chazz once again laughed, saying "Oh, by the way, forget my monster?! He hasn't forgotten you! Attack her directly now Assault Cannon Beetle with Cannon Burst!"

The large combo machine creature let out a small mechanical moan as the mouth of the creature, along with the tail, took aim and released blasts of yellow energy at Marie. She put her arms up in defense, but was struck hard, pushing her backwards a few feet, but she managed remained standing.

Lowering her arms, she smirked, saying "Is that the best you can do Chazz?"

Chuckling, Chazz replied "Actually, I'm not finished. I activate my Assault Cannon Beetle's special ability. For each monster I sacrifice, I get to do 800 points of damage to your life points. So, I now send all three Ojama's to the Grave to do you some major damage!"

The three small creatures quickly turned to Chazz, yelling together "_Please boss, no!_"

"Later boys!" was all Chazz replied with.

Slowly, the tail of the large combo creature grabbed each creature and placed each into the cannon barrel, which was a large horn. After all three were loaded, the machine released a large blast, sending all three creatures flying at Marie. Each struck her, knocking her finally to one knee and causing her to start panting.

"What was that you said earlier about me losing? Well, I wouldn't count on it, because the Chazz will win this duel!" (Marie 3200, Chazz 700)

The crowd was all in shock at the turn of events. None could believe how things had changed so quickly.

"I can't believe it, he managed to cut Professor Marie's score down by over half in a single turn!" Bastion exclaimed.

"That sure was a quick comeback. Still, Chazz has a long ways to go." Alexis commented.

Looking on, Jaden excitedly said "Man, this duel rocks! I can't wait to see what Professor Marie does!"

Syrus looked over at Jaden and lightly smiled, saying "Yeah, this duel has been fast paced and hard hitting."

Illidan only stared at Marie, trying to decide how things were going. "_She's in a bit of trouble, but nothing she can't get out of. I know you can do it Marie. Just hang on._"

Finally catching her breath, Marie stood up and smoothed out her skirt. Lightly chuckling, she said "That's the way Chazz. I was pondering if you'd ever manage to hit me or not."

Somewhat shocked at her statement, Chazz gruffly replied "Just go so I can end this duel soon."

Smirking at his comment, Marie drew her next card, saying "I play Royal Knight (1300/800) in defense."

A white armored knight with some green/blue skin and white metallic wings with a sword appeared on the field in a kneeling stance with his sword in a guard position.

"That's all for now." (Marie 3200, Chazz 700)

Quickly drawing, Chazz called out "That's a shame, cause I'm about the lay the hammer down on you! I play the spell card Front Change! This spell allows me to swap out my Assault Cannon Beetle for Combat Scissors Beetle (3600/1800)!"

The machine creature suddenly broke apart into the three monsters. The black and yellow machine bug came to a stop, while the red spider creature stepped onto it. It's body lowered into the creature, but left it's legs standing. The green creature then landed into the waiting legs that were sticking up and docked. With four legs sticking out to the sides, two holding the green creature up, and one in the front and one in the back sticking out, the creature let out a small moan.

"Crap…" Marie said under her breath.

Laughing, Chazz pointed at Marie's monster, saying "Attack with Scissor Missile!"

Aiming directly for the white armored knight, the combo machine launched a set of scissors from it's top half. On impact, the scissors detonated, causing a large explosion and a huge plume of smoke.

"Oh yeah Teach, there is a special effect of my monster I neglected to tell you about. When it destroys a monster, it deals you 1000 points of damage!"

"What?!" was all Marie managed to get out before a beam shot out of the combo machine's horn like mouth. It struck her hard, pushing her backwards a few feet and caused her to fall to one knee, panting hard once again.

Laughing, Chazz arrogantly said "Your go, but I wouldn't count on surviving much longer." (Marie 2200, Chazz 700)

"_Hang on Marie._" Illidan mentally said.

Finally catching her breath, Marie stood up on shaky legs and drew her card. "I play Pot of Greed, meaning I get two new cards."

Drawing two more cards, Marie showed one card, saying "Since I just used Pot of Greed to draw these two cards, this monster's effect goes off. When I use a card to draw it into my hand, I get to special summon it, so come on out Watapon (200/300)!"

A small pink fur ball with bright purple eyes and two small antennas that had pink puff balls on it appeared on the field on a horizontal card image.

"Next, I summon Herald of Purple Light (300/500) in defense mode."

A grey sphere, with holes in it with purple like light coming out of the holes, like creature with purple metallic wings and two odd shaped arms and a small spike on the bottom appeared on the field with it's arms crossed in defense.

"To end, I'll throw this card face down." (Marie 2200, Chazz 700)

Drawing with quickness, Chazz said "About time! Combat Scissors Beetle, attack her Watapon with Scissor Missile!"

Slowly, the machine creature took aim, preparing to fire it's scissors. At long last, the creature launched it's blast straight at the small creature, easily shattering it with no effort. The large explosion soon sent a backlash to Marie, pushing her backwards slightly and causing her to lightly pant.

"I'll place this card on the field just in case you decide to try something daring." (Marie 1200, Chazz 700)

Picking up a new card, Marie said "I summon Herald of Green Light (300/500) in defense."

A green creature, looking quite similar to the purple one, took a defensive stance beside of the purple creature on the field.

"Your go." (Marie 1200, Chazz 700)

Drawing his next card, Chazz called out "Attack that purple thing with Scissor Missile!"

The bug machine combo took aim once more, and launched a pair of metallic scissors at the purple creature. Upon impact, the creature exploded, sending a blast of damage at Marie. Again, she slid backwards a bit and was lightly panting, but remained standing.

"I'll give you credit Teach, you're hanging on longer than I thought you would. Still, that doesn't mean you'll be around for long! Next turn, you're finished!" (Marie 200, Chazz 700)

Catching her breath, Marie lightly smirked, saying "We'll see."

Picking up her next card, Marie prepared to say something when Chazz called out "I activate my face down trap, Ojama Trio! Get ready to get some new friends, cause this lends you three Ojama Tokens (0/1000) that can't be sacrificed. Oh yeah, if they're destroyed, you lose 300 life points!"

Smirking at this, Marie called out "Thanks Chazz, that's exactly what I was waiting for! I activate the trap card Trap Jammer! Thanks to this card, your trap is negated, but there is so much more. You see, I needed to activate my trap card to play a certain monster from my hand."

Looking curiously at Marie, Chazz asked "What kind of monster requires you to play Trap Jammer…"

Interrupting, Marie said "Not Trap Jammer specifically. I needed to activate a Counter Trap card in order to summon this creature. Now that I have, I must sacrifice all monsters on my field in order to summon Voltanis the Adjudicator (2800/1400)!"

A purple figure appeared on the field with two large metallic wings. It had purple metallic robes, which covered it's feet, and had two odd shaped arms which had three doughnut like joints, each being in the shoulder, elbow, and the palm of it's hands. In it's left hand was a purple staff that was half as tall as the creature's body. The staff had a stone of some kind embedded into it just below the top of the staff, with two pieces that curved outwards and then back into the staff. Finally, the head of the creature had a single eye, with a purple top hat like piece.

Chazz gawked at the creature, unsure what to make of it, saying with a stutter "What is that thing!?"

Smirking once more, Marie replied "It's Voltanis the Adjudicator."

Snapping out of his gawk, Chazz gruffly replied "It still isn't a match for my monster!"

Nodding, Marie replied "You're correct there Chazz. My monster doesn't have the attack points to beat your monster."

Smirking once again though, she slyly said "But that doesn't mean your monster is safe."

"What are you talking about?" Chazz asked roughly.

Winking at him, she replied "Ever heard of a special effect?"

Sweat formed on Chazz's forehead, as he asked "What does that thing do then?"

"Voltanis has a pretty simple effect really. You see, for each Fairy type monster I sacrificed to summon him, I get to destroy that many monsters on your field!" Marie replied with a smirk.

"Wait, you only sacrificed one…" Chazz said with realization.

Nodding in reply, Marie said "Correct, and since I sacrificed one, that means I get to destroy one of your monsters. Hmm, you only have one, so say good bye to that machine!"

Pointing his staff at the machine creature, the purple monster released a stream of purple energy at the machine combo monster. It was struck head on, exploding into several pieces of scrap metal.

"Game over Chazz! Voltanis, direct attack with Adjudicator Judgment!"

Staring at Chazz, the purple creature raised it's staff and fired a purple sphere of energy. The blast struck Chazz hard, knocking him onto his back. Once the smoke cleared from the blast, Chazz's life points drained to zero, causing the holograms on the field slowly began to vanish and the Duel Disks to power down.

Smirking with triumph, Marie walked over to Chazz. Putting her hands on her hips, she said "A deal is a deal Chazz. You will be partners with Jaden, and no griping about it!"

Slowly standing, Chazz lowered his eyes, and said "A deal is a deal…"

Walking slowly towards the desks with his head down in defeat, Chazz muttered "Great…"

"By the way Chazz, good game." Marie commented as he passed by her.

Turning back to the students, Marie asked "Anyone else want to try and go against our decision for teams?"

The entire room shook their heads no, making Marie smirk with triumph. Seeing the day was past over, she said "Class dismissed."


	27. Chapter 27: Secret Seals

**Hey everyone! Well, yet another week goes by. Heh, not too much new here. My grandpa is doing pretty well. He's been in rehab now for 11 days, and I believe next week or so they're going to have a meeting with the doctor, physical therapists, etc, and our family to discuss options on what to do next. He was doing well last night, although he was pretty exhausted, which I figured would happen, heh. Other than that, nothing else is really new.**

**Ok, here is an update on where I am with this story. I'm still trying to finish wrapping this story up. I have a few more chapters to write, but I got a great idea, partially from my mate and myself, to go back and do, but it's near the end, so it won't slow things down either. I'm hoping to finish this up soon, but I keep getting busy with life, hence I don't finish. Heh, I only work on this mostly at work, but I've been busy at work. I've tried at home, but I'm just not inspired to work on it much there, especially with a meddling mate who drags me away from the computer, hehe. But I promise, I'll have this done within the near future. I hope before Columbus Day, but I'll make no guarantees. That is like less than 2 weeks, so no idea if that's even doable, but I'll try. Also, the few one shots I have set up to work on will get my attention next once I finish this story. Then I can set my focus on my first full length Inuyasha fic. I've got a great amount of ideas for it that I've dying to write on, but I wish to finish this story first. Hopefully, I'll get everything that I wish to have done soon, and then I can move onto **_**Another**_** (the Inuyasha fic), although I'll miss working on these story.**

**Last time, Marie flattened Chazz's ego and forced him and Jaden to become partners for the Tag Team Class. Now that the teams are formed, what does the future hold?**

**Happy day, it's time once again! It's once more review time!!!**

**Very Swampeh: Heh, yes, Marie sure put Chazz in his place. Now Jaden and Chazz are a team, which could be good… or bad, lol. Heh, never know about Chazz holding up his end of the bargain.**

**x-knight20: Thanks. It's cool about not reviewing. I understand, life happens. Thank you about grandpa. Yes, I'm sure everyone is happy once more that Dorthy is cooking now.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Yeah, Chazz made a comeback, only to fall short. Thanks for the comment. True, the events are a bit slow. I think I modeled after the show a bit too much in that aspect. The first season had no plot till over halfway in, which kind of sucked and I should have thought about, but eh, I wanted to do some school stuff first, lol. Thank you about my grandfather.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Lol, yes, not much to the chapter. Yuck! Algebra 2 homework… (/Shudders at memories of school.\) Lol, I wish I knew where you use it. Heh, I wish I knew where I use the high mathematics I had to take to get my degree. I had a math minor almost (one class shy) for crying out loud!**

**Alrighty, that's it for the reviews. Thank you everyone for posting your thoughts/comments/suggestions. I'm glad to see this story doing so well. Heh, when I began work on it, I thought originally it would be much longer than **_**Tournament of Power**_**, but unfortunately, it's not going to be. Well, it probably is word wise, but chapter wise, nah. I will give you this much info though. It's longer than **_**The Wolves Seal**_**. There's something for everyone to look forward to.**

**Ok, I'm done for today, so everyone, enjoy this chapter. I look forward to seeing the reviews for it. Later!**

**Chapter 27**

Nearly six weeks into the semester, Illidan and Marie managed to sneak out one night once the students had headed for bed. Silently, the pair walked into the woods, armed with flashlights. The fall was coming upon the island, making it slightly chilly already and changing the colors of the leaves.

The pair walked into the deeper part of the forest, till at long last they reached their destinations. Waving his hand through the air, Illidan unleashed a small wave of Shadow Magic, causing three shrines to suddenly appear.

"So, that's why the students never found them. You hid them by using your Shadow Powers?" Marie asked curiously.

Nodding, Illidan replied "I made a shroud to cover the three shrines. This part of the woods is very far out, and rarely the students come out this far. Plus, I made the shroud so that they can't see, feel, touch, smell, or hear it. I just made it transparent, hoping no one would find it ever, other than those that should."

Looking at the three shrines, Marie nodded, saying "It's quite clever. Why didn't you ever talk about these shrines with me?"

Lightly sighing, Illidan calmly replied "It was for your safety. If someone found out you knew the location, or how they were constructed, you were more at risk. So, I left that information up to myself."

Seeing that he had a point, Marie nodded as Illidan worked his way over to one of the shrines. She soon walked up behind him, embracing him, softly whispering "You can trust me always Illidan."

Turning to face her with a look of shock, he said "Marie, I fully trust you. I'd think by now you know that."

"Yes, I do, yet you hide things from me." she replied evenly.

"You don't understand. I'm trying to protect you from…"

Interrupting, she answered "Yourself. Illidan, think about what you're saying. If someone found out about the shrines and came after me, and even if I didn't know anything about them, don't you think they'd use me as a shield or hostage still?"

Taking a moment to contemplate her words, Illidan finally sighed deeply, saying "Point well taken. I'm sorry… I shouldn't have hid it from you. I just worry that someone will do that exact thing. I was hoping if you had no information, they'd give up and come after me directly."

Embracing him, she softly said "I know you want to keep me safe, but you can't expect to protect me from everything. I can defend myself you know."

Sighing once more, Illidan replied "I know, but I swore to protect you…"

"Yes, but you can't always defend me from everything, including yourself. So please, do tell me things that are important, ok?"

Pulling back to look deep into her eyes, Illidan nodded, saying "I will."

Smiling softly, she said "Good. Now, let's hurry up, it's chilly out here."

Lightly chuckling at her behavior, Illidan turned to the first shrine and began to examine it. Using his Shadow Powers, he reached out to feel for any changes in the barrier or the shroud that protected the shrine. Once certain nothing had changed, he reached out to feel for the inner seal. Again, nothing unusual turned up.

After ten minutes, Illidan had finished checking all three shrines, and said aloud "All three appear fine. I guess all that's left is hide them and check one last place."

Waving his hand in a simple motion, the shrouds and barriers reappeared, instantly hiding the shrines. Nodding with approval, Illidan led Marie towards their next location.

"So, what kind of seals did you place around those cards?" Marie candidly asked.

Smiling at her, Illidan replied "Dear, you know I don't discuss that with anyone, even you."

Sticking her tongue out, she teasingly said "I had to try."

Lightly chuckling at her, Illidan replied "Don't worry about it. I made sure the seals will stay secure."

Frowning, he continued with "I do worry about the Sacred Beast Cards though."

Seeing this, she asked "Why is that?"

"They were taken last year by the superintendent. Somehow, he managed to break the barrier surrounding them with ease."

Thinking for a moment, Marie responded "Maybe it was due to the Shadow Charm he had."

Shaking his head, Illidan coolly remarked "No, the barrier was strong enough to resist it. Something else broke the barrier, I'm sure of it."

"Well, you could go take a look at it." Marie suggested.

Quick to respond, Illidan calmly said "True, but I have a feeling I'd find nothing out of place, other than maybe the barrier missing."

Lightly sighing, he looked up at the night sky through the tree branches. It was a cloudy night, so no stars could be seen.

"Thinking of your father again?" Marie asked timidly, breaking Illidan out of his gaze.

Lightly smirking, he looked back over at her, saying "Yeah. I've thought a lot about him recently. I don't know why. Then again, the same could be true about Zell."

Raising an eyebrow, she asked "What about him?"

"I don't know. For some reason, my thoughts have turned towards Zell. I briefly knew him. I just don't understand why I keep thinking about him. He's been dead for five millennia, yet my memories of him have been coming up recently more and more."

Taking a moment to process it, Marie asked "Do you think it has something to do with my nightmare several weeks ago?"

Shaking his head, Illidan responded "No, I don't. I don't know why it's happening, but for some reason I do have memories of him resurfacing. Maybe I'm just being nostalgic or something. Or possibly since I've been thinking of my father so much that the memories of Zell have come out as well."

The two let out a small sigh. Taking her hand in his, Illidan kindly said "But it doesn't matter. I'm with you, which is all that matters."

Smiling back at him, she replied "Yes, that's all that matters to me too."

After a few more minutes of walking, the two arrived at a building that was run down, but mostly still intact. The building appeared to be a dorm that was white at one time, but the years hadn't been kind to the paint job.

Staring at it, Illidan cautiously said "Be on guard here. This is where students have vanished, and I have a good idea why that is so."

Nodding in reply, Marie followed him silently as they entered the dilapidated building with flashlights a blazing. Searching room after room, the three finally came to the basement where a large circle was engraved into the floor.

"This place sure is creepy." Marie commented as she stayed close to Illidan.

Lightly smiling, Illidan replied "Yeah, it is that, but not that bad. After all, the cobwebs give it a homey charm."

Shaking her head at his sarcasm, Marie asked "So, where is the shrine?"

Leading her forward, the two entered into a room off of the main room. Finally, they stopped and Illidan called forth his powers. A wall on the far side of the room began to shimmer as the shroud on it lowered, revealing a door. Walking up to it, Illidan examined the door, making sure it was still secure and hadn't been moved.

"Hmm, no one has disturbed the door, yet something don't feel right." he softly spoke aloud.

Looking around, Illidan examined the remainder of the room, seemingly checking for anything out of place. "Hmm…"

"What is it?" Marie asked, curious to see what he had found.

Shaking his head, he said "I can't find any signs that anyone has broken into the room, or that anyone has disturbed the shroud or the barrier. Still, something had to happen here. The seal is intact, yet something doesn't feel right. I wonder if the card I placed here has gotten free."

Thinking for a moment, Marie stated "You put Anubis here, didn't you?"

Nodding in reply, he said "Yeah, I placed it in a special shrine. I spent more time on it than any of the others. If only I could get to the card to make sure…"

Curious, she asked "What do you mean if you could get to it?"

Smirking back at her, Illidan said "Remember dear, I don't speak of how I sealed something. Let's just say, I have to have something else to enter this tomb."

Seeing he wouldn't cooperate, Marie sighed and looked around once more. The two finally finished their looking, and Illidan waved his hand at the door. Once more, a shroud came over the door, making it vanish again.

The two began to walk out of the room when Illidan stopped in the middle. Marie was about to ask why when she felt the reason as well.

"That was a surge of Shadow Magic…" he said while glancing around.

Reaching out with his senses, Illidan walked in the direction he had felt the small surge. His powers were already beginning to rise to the surface, but only slightly so that he could call on them immediately.

Finding the spot where the surge had come from, he frowned. "The surge is gone, but it was here."

"I felt it too, but it quickly dissipated. What could have caused that?" Marie asked, still glancing around to make sure nothing happened.

"I have a good idea what could have, but it does us no good. I can't do anything about it for now." remarked Illidan.

Nodding, Marie asked "Do you think Anubis is behind the disappearances?"

"I don't know, but I do know if he is it's trouble. I just can't believe that the guardian couldn't contain him…"

Looking curiously at him, Marie asked "The guardian?"

"It's nothing. Let's get out of here. There is nothing else we can do." Illidan quickly replied, brushing off Marie's question.

Not wanting to be left behind, Marie quickly followed. The pair soon left the building and began walking back towards the Slifer Dorm. The trip back was silent most of the way, till Marie finally broke the silence.

"Is the guardian a person, or a Duel Spirit?" she asked, knowing she wouldn't get an answer most likely.

Sighing, Illidan replied "I told you before, I don't discuss my seals. I have no intentions of divulging that kind of information to anyone." Sighing once more, he sadly added "Including you."

"_What happened to you my friend? Did Anubis finally overpower you?_" Illidan silently questioned himself, hoping the worst hadn't happened.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

A few more weeks passed by, and the students were all growing excited about the Dorm Cup. So far, Obelisk Blue led the standings, with Slifer Red raising a lot of eyebrows for being a close second, but Ra Yellow was not far behind the two either.

The tag team duels for Illidan and Marie's class were preparing to begin, with the pair making up the rounds. After a few weeks of work, the pair finally released the duels that would take place. Many of the first round duels would pit tough teams against one another.

During this time frame as well, promotion duels were held for students who were thought to have earned the right to move up in rank. Both Chazz and Syrus were put in duels to get into Ra Yellow Dorm.

Syrus struggled through his duel against a strong Ra Yellow girl named Akai Tashio, whom used a Light deck. At long last though, Syrus managed to break free and win the duel. He was quite happy, yet at the same time sad. He moved his stuff into a Ra Dorm room, but frequently visited the Slifer Dorm to see Jaden and his other friends. Both Illidan and Marie made it absolutely clear that he was still welcomed at the dorm, which he greatly appreciated.

Chazz's duel went semi-well also. For the most part, he took the lead, only to be brought to his knees. In the end, Chazz's Ojamas had come to his rescue, saving him from a crushing defeat by Bastion. Upon winning the duel, Chazz gathered his many things from the Slifer Dorm and moved into the Ra Dorm, but complained about it being too 'clean' for his taste, but it had more space for him, which was all he cared about. He visited the Slifer Dorm off and on, but didn't stay long usually.

A week or so later, an announcement was made of a Teachers Tournament beginning. The Chancellor announced the sixteen teachers that would duel in the tournament. Each of the three headmasters and student teachers for the dorms were in the tournament, along with other teachers.

Soon enough, the tournament began. The rounds were conducted during the evening of one week. Illidan, Marie, and Zane each made their way through the first round with no problems. The second round was not as bad either, but the semi-finals caused a problem.

In the semi-finals, Illidan faced off with Marie in a tough battle. Neither gave an inch on one another, and many students and teachers swore that no one could tell the two were married. The battle was incredible to watch, for each countered the others moves quite well. It was also interesting to watch mages facing off with fairies, with neither seemingly growing stronger than the other. After a long battle, Illidan finally managed to defeat Marie. She took it lightly, and gave him a hug and kiss at the end.

The other semi-final consisted of Tyranda Whisperwind of Ra Dorm facing off with Zane. The battle seemed one sided for the most part, with Tyranda dominating Zane for a long time. She had forced him into a corner when she took away his ability to use fusion monsters. Finally though, Zane managed to free himself of the inability to summon fusion monsters and brought forth his Cyber End Dragon. In true tradition, Zane managed to wipe Tyranda out with one earth shattering blast to win the duel. Zane respectfully checked on her afterwards, and she congratulated him on the win.

The finals were finally set, pitting Illidan vs. Zane. Marie, along with the other Slifer students were highly anticipating the upcoming duel.

"This is going to be one sweet duel!" Jaden happily said as he watched both Illidan and Zane preparing to take the stage.

Folding his arms over his chest, Chazz muttered darkly "I highly doubt Professor Illidan will win."

Quickly responding, Syrus commented "I don't know Chazz. He beat Crowler earlier this year, plus he managed to win that three way duel. And then there were the three other rounds of this tour…"

"Alright already, I get it!" Chazz annoyingly replied.

"It will be a good show, without a doubt." Bastion noted.

Nodding, Alexis added "It'll be interesting to see how Zane does against Illidan. So far, Illidan has shown a similar dueling style to Zane's."

"Yeah, but Illidan plays with a bit more heart, like a commando in a heartbreaking situation." Hasselberry commented.

Seeing the duel was about to start, Jaden said "I guess it's time to find out."

On the field, both Zane and Illidan were looking up at one another with the Chancellor in the middle. Seeing the two were ready, the Chancellor cleared his voice, saying "The finals for the Teachers Tournament are about to begin. In a shocking surprise, both Headmaster Illidan Stormrage and Student Teacher Zane Truesdale of the Slifer Dorm have each made it to the finals. Teachers, please meet in the middle."

Both Illidan and Zane calmly met in the middle, with the Chancellor saying "Illidan, you have choice of who goes first."

Without thinking, he said "I shall go first."

Nodding, the Chancellor announced "Illidan has decided to take the first turn, so it is decided."

Privately, the Chancellor said to the two "I'm very happy and proud to see the Slifer Dorm representatives come this far. I hope you two are going to have a fun duel."

Illidan smiled, saying "Of course. This will be fun."

In return, Zane kindly smiled back, replying "It will be quite a duel."

Each extended their hands to one another, and happily shook. Turning their backs to one another, each proceeded back to their starting positions.

Walking along, Illidan became lost in thought. "_This will be one of my toughest duels. I watched him single handedly take Marie down, plus I've seen the rest of his duels in this tournament. I'm unsure how this will turn out, but I have a feeling winning won't be easy._"

"_Still, who said I ever wanted it easy._" he thought with a smirk.

With Zane, he mentally prepared himself for his duel during the walk. "_Illidan will be one of my toughest opponents yet. Like Jaden, he fights with his heart, but he also fights strategically. A combo of the two is dangerous, and could spell disaster._"

In an after thought, Zane lightly smirked. "_Even though I know this will be tough, the thought of facing him excites me. This should be good._"

The two finally reached their marks and turned to one another. Seeing this, the Chancellor walked off the stage and declared "Let the finals begin!"

Both extended their left arms in front of their bodies as their Duel Disks came to life. Once they had fully powered up, the two drew their first five cards, each simultaneously saying "Duel!"


	28. Chapter 28: Strategy vs Heart, Pt 1

**Hello once again everybody! This week has been somewhat quickly flying by since last time. Not much has happened really in life. I've just kind of been taking it easy the last 2 evenings, mostly relaxing, thinking up things to add to this story, enjoying lots of time with my mate (who keeps dragging me away from writing, lol), and just trying to recollect myself I suppose.   
**

**Last time, Illidan and Marie checked on the state of the shrines that house the Egyptian God Cards, as well as the abandoned dorm, which was once the Anubis Dorm, that houses the final Egyptian God Card. Illidan released small tidbits of info to Marie, but keeps her out of the loop for her own protection. The duel between Illidan and Zane then began for the Teachers Tournament, leaving everyone asking, who will win?   
**

**Ok, let's get down to this! It's once again review time!   
**

**Very Swampeh: Yeah, he's very mysterious about the seals and shrines, but then again, they are his responsibility, and maybe he wants to only bear that burden. Lol, yes, I'm sure Marie is quite irritated with his secrets. Hmm, mystery man's friends, eh? Anything is possible. Yep, at long last, Illidan vs. Zane! Indeed it is going to be an explosive duel.   
**

**Isis**** the Sphinx: LOL! Uh… my mate refuses comment on that one, hehe. Seriously, she hasn't had much time, or been inspired either, to continue on with it. She has ideas that we came up with together, but she's yet to put them on paper or computer. I asked her, and she said once she got a good job, she'd pick back up with it. She was sort of surprised I think that anyone even asked about it, lol. Actually, she has 2 stories to finish. _History of the Millennium Items _and _Cartoon Universes_ are the 2 stories, but she's just not worked on it. She will though, hopefully, hehe. Yes, some plot! Yeah, Algebra isn't hard, just a pain in the butt. Just wait till you get Trig… or Calculus… If you thought Algebra 2 sucked, just wait…   
**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Heh, the main plot is coming. It just takes a little bit of time to get to it. Actually, it should be coming up soon enough. I believe the plot really kicks in within the next couple of chapters, as I remember. Thanks about grandpa.   
**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Yeah, it is. Possibly something or someone messed with Anubis's seal… Do you mean the Egyptian Gods or Sacred Beasts when referring to Zorc? If you meant the Sacred Beasts, well, hehe…   
**

**Alright, that's it for this round. Thank you everyone for your continued reviews and support. I greatly enjoy reading everyone's comments, questions, and analysis of my story. It truly helps me in my writing, which I'm so very thankful for. And to anyone who hasn't reviewed, I implore you to. Your comments/questions/analysis are all more than welcome. Don't feel shy about doing it. Heh, even if it's criticism, feel free. Lol, I'm sure any of the reviewers who have been reading since _Tournament of Power _can attest that I can take the criticism, even when it's bad. But anyways, I again thank everyone who have read this and reviewed, as well as marked it as a fav or alert. Thank you all again. And now, without further ado, the chapter! Enjoy! **

**Chapter 28**

Drawing his sixth card, Illidan called out "I hope you're ready for this Zane!"

Immediately, Zane replied "I am. Come, let's see what you got Illidan!"

Smirking, Illidan said in return "You may not want to see it! I start by setting this monster. To end, I'll throw down a face down card." (Illidan 8000, Zane 8000)

Drawing quickly, Zane sternly said "I'm somewhat surprised you'd start the duel out that way. I'll kick things off by special summoning my Cyber Dragon (2100/1600)!"

A mechanical snake like dragon with shiny grey metal appeared on the field, letting out a soft mechanical roar.

"Since that was a special summon, I can now summon my Proto-Cyber Dragon (1100/600) as well!"

Another mechanical snake like dragon appeared on the field beside the other. This one though appeared less technological, for it had wires hanging out the side of it's body, like it was not completely finished being built.

"Cyber Dragon, attack that face down card with Strident Blaze!"

Roaring at it's master's command, the stronger mechanical dragon opened it's jaws and released a powerful stream of flames.

Seeing the attack coming, Illidan pointed to his face down card, saying "You just triggered my trap! Go Magic Cylinder! Thanks to this, your attack is negated and you lose the life points equal to your dragon's attack points!"

A pair of pink cylinders with yellow trim appeared, with each pointing straight at the flaming attack.

Smirking at this, Zane called out "Not quite Illidan! I activate from my hand the spell card Trap Booster. With this, I can discard a card from my hand in order to activate a trap card from my hand. So, I send my Heavy Mech Support Platform from my hand to the Graveyard in order to activate Trap Jammer, which cancels out your trap card!"

The pair of cylinders shattered instantly, allowing the stream of fire to continue on. As it neared, the horizontal card image glowed, causing the monster to appear. A golden lamp of ancient design on long legs appeared and began glowing.

Slightly smirking, Illidan called out "You've triggered my Ancient Lamp's (900/1400) special ability! When flipped up due to battle, I get to designate a new target on your field as your monster's target, so I pick that Proto-Cyber Dragon!"

Zane watched with an indifferent face as the flames bounced off of the glowing lamp and straight back at the weaker machine dragon. The dragon cried out in pain as it was struck. At long last, it exploded into many pieces, leaving a small plume of smoke.

"Not bad Illidan. I'll lay this face down to end." (Illidan 8000, Zane 7000)

Picking up a new card, Illidan lightly smirked, saying "Thanks, but my lamp does more than just reflect your attack. While it's face up, I can use it's second effect. I can now special summon from my hand La Jinn the Mystical Genie of the Lamp (1800/1000)."

A green smoke started spilling out of the golden lamp. Slowly, the smoke took the form of a green genie with a thin mustache, large green muscles with gold bracelets on his writs, a golden necklace around his neck, and a small purple oval hat on his head.

"I sacrifice Ancient Lamp to summon Cybernetic Magician (2400/1000)."

A small flash appeared on the field as the golden lamp vanished, and a mage clad in white appeared. He had a small pointed hat, a white and silver trench coat/robes, blue pants, white boots that went up to his knees, and a small L-shaped rod that had a small bit past the corner of the L size. His hair was blonde, and his skin tone was light green.

"I'm not through yet, for I play the spell Magical Dimension!"

A golden statue that hung in the air thanks to four chains holding it within a metal frame appeared on the field.

"This let's me sacrifice a monster on my field, so farewell La Jinn."

The doors on the top half of the statue opened up and shot out a small white beam at the genie. Slowly, the genie was sucked in, causing the doors on the statue to shut once more.

"Thanks to that sacrifice, I get to special summon any Spellcaster from my hand, so I pick Chaos Command Magician (2400/1900)!"

The statue doors glowed lightly as they opened and a new beam of darkness shot out. Immediately, the darkness took form of a mage in black robes with yellow trim. He wore a hat on his head that hid a majority of his face, but a small sign of blue skin could be seen.

"Also, my spell card has one last effect. I get to destroy one monster on the field, so I pick your Cyber Dragon!"

Immediately, the statue with it's doors still opened shot a golden beam at the machine dragon. It was easily struck, causing a small explosion, sending the dragon into many pieces.

Zane only lightly frowned at this, but kept his peace. Seeing he was eying his face down card, Illidan lightly chuckled, saying "I wouldn't count on that face down to save you! You see, I have another monster I'm going to summon. I sacrifice both my mages in order to special summon Sorcerer of Dark Magic (3200/2800)!"

Both mages vanished in a flash, but was quickly replaced by a more powerful mage. He wore black body armor that covered a majority of his body, except his muscular arms. He had a set of mages robes on over top the armor that were an odd color of blue. On his back, a black cape reached to his feet. A strange set of shoulder pads and a stranger spike like structure rose behind his head. Also, a black hat covered his head, revealing his blue eyes and face, with a little of his blonde hair, only. His hands were covered in black gloves, and in his right hand was a powerful staff. It was green with a tri-pitch fork like design, with a small blue sphere in the center.

"Sorcerer of Dark Magic, direct attack him now with Celestial Blast!"

Pointing his staff directly at Zane, the mage released a powerful sphere of black energy.

Before the blast could reach Zane though, he called out "I activate a trap card…"

As he said this, the mage pointed his staff at the trap card, sending a blast of energy at it, instantly blowing away the rising card known as Call of the Haunted.

"What did your mage just do!?" Zane asked in shock.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan wagged his finger, saying "My mage doesn't like trap cards very much. He has the ability to negate the activation of trap cards and destroy them."

Zane lightly groaned at this, but immediately turned his attention to the blast coming at him. Crossing his arms and bracing himself, Zane waited for the hit to come. It came soon, hitting him hard enough to push him backwards and to one knee. He sat there momentarily, panting lightly from the hit.

"I'm finished for this turn." (Illidan 8000, Zane 3800)

The crowd all cheered loudly, excited by the intensity of the duel so far. Many were shocked, if not completely surprised by Illidan's moves, as well as Zane's.

"I can't believe it, my brother lost that many life points already!" Syrus said with a bit of worry in his voice.

Seeing his worry, Jaden replied with a smile "Don't worry Sy. I'm sure Zane will be just fine."

"Yeah, your brother is one tough duelist. He'll be fine." Alexis reassured him.

Seeing Syrus's unsure look, Hasselberry added "Buck up Private Truesdale. I'm sure General Truesdale will do his very best."

Slightly smiling, Syrus nodded, hoping the others were right.

On the field, Zane stood up once his breathing had finally evened up. Smirking, he said "Not bad Illidan. I knew you'd provide a very entertaining duel."

Lightly chuckling, Illidan replied "This duel is rather fun Zane. I hope it continues to be."

Nodding, Zane drew his card, saying "It shall be, but first, I play the spell Pot of Greed! With this, I can draw two new cards!"

Picking up two more cards, Zane lightly smirked, saying "Things are about to get intense Illidan. I first activate the spell card Future Fusion. The way this card works is simple. I can send some Fusion Material monsters from my deck to the Graveyard, and then special summon the Fusion Monster that would be created by the Fusion Material monsters."

Pulling his deck out, he fanned it out and pushed three cards out. Grabbing all three and turning them to Illidan, Zane said "I pick my two remaining Cyber Dragons (2100/1600) and a lone Proto-Cyber Dragon (1100/600)!"

Placing all three in his Graveyard slot, the three slowly slid in. After reshuffling his deck, Zane called out "That means I can now summon my Cyber End Dragon (4000/2800)!"

A large three headed mechanical snake like dragon with massive wings and a single tail appeared on the field with a loud mechanical roar.

"Of course, there is a downside to using Future Fusion. During the turn I summon this monster, it can't attack."

Smirking, Zane added "Although, I intend to change that. I activate the spell card Quick Attack! Thanks to this, my monster can attack this turn!"

Illidan lightly growled at this fact, knowing his advantage was gone now. "_Great, now I have to deal with the tin can of destruction._"

Swinging his arm around to point his finger at the mage, Zane called out "Cyber End Dragon, blast that mage with Super Strident Blaze!"

Letting out a loud mechanical roar, the three heads of the powerful machine dragon took aim, each with glowing white energy in their mouths. After a moment of charging up, the three heads released their blasts, combining them together into a larger blast. The blast struck the black robed mage, engulfing him within the entire stream of energy. He was soon destroyed within the blast, leaving nothing behind as evidence that he had been there. A little bit of the blast continued on through, striking Illidan, who managed to brace himself from taking too large a hit.

"I think that is a good enough demonstration for now." (Illidan 7200, Zane 3800)

Once the smoke had cleared from the blast, Illidan called out "Well met Zane, but don't expect me to fold so quickly."

Lightly smirking, Zane replied "I know you won't. But I only wonder how long even you can hold up against the might of my dragon."

Drawing a card, Illidan responded "We'll see! I place one card face down and end." (Illidan 7200, Zane 3800)

Picking up his next card, Zane said "Kind of disappointing Illidan. I expected you to summon something. Not that it could stand up against the might of my Cyber End Dragon."

"Your dragon isn't invincible Zane, and I'll prove it when I take it down." Illidan quickly retorted.

Smirking, Zane replied "We shall see. For now though, I summon my last Proto-Cyber Dragon (1100/600) to the field!"

Another unfinished mechanical snake like dragon with dull grey metal and wires hanging out of it's body appeared onto the field. It let out a weak mechanical roar, attempting to prove it's strength.

"Cyber End Dragon, direct …"

"I don't think so Zane! I activate my trap card, Spellbinding Circle!" interrupted Illidan.

Slowly, a green circle with a strange golden symbol forming on the top, left, right, and bottom formed, with a white question mark like symbol in the center appeared above the field. Illidan pointed at the three headed dragon, causing the circle to follow and ensnare the dragon by it's three massive heads. The creature roared loudly, but finally stopped struggling.

"Thanks to Spellbinding Circle, your dragon can't attack or switch it's mode so long as my trap is in play." Illidan pointed out.

Zane's brow lightly furrowed, but he quickly replaced it with his calmness, saying "That maybe so, but you forgot all about my Proto-Cyber Dragon! Attack him directly!"

The weak machine creature roared as loud as it could and shot a beam of green energy directly at Illidan, who prepared for the blast. The blast struck him quickly, but it wasn't too powerful, thus he didn't slide backwards at all.

"Your move Illidan, but make no mistake, I will free my dragon." (Illidan 6100, Zane 3800)

"I can't believe Zane's Cyber End Dragon has been rendered useless." Alexis commented.

Nodding his head, Chazz added "Me either. Zane almost always has his dragon out and on a rampage."

"Big brother…" Syrus quietly said.

Staring on, Jaden smiled, saying "This duel rocks! Makes me wish I could get down there and mix it up with both of them right now!"

Marie looked back at Jaden and softly smiled at him. Turning back to look at Illidan, her brow furrowed. "_Zane has Illidan cornered right now, but the duel isn't over. Hang on Illidan. I know you can do this._"

Back on the field, Illidan pulled his next card from his deck and smirked. "It's about time I turned things around, and it starts with this! I summon Breaker the Magical Warrior (1600/1000)!"

A mage in maroon colored armor and robes with a sword and maroon shield, along with a maroon cape appeared. Very little of the mages blue skin could be seen, for it was covered by a large cone hat.

"Whenever Breaker is Normal Summoned, his effect goes off. He gains one Spell Counter, which grants him an additional 300 attack points (1600 + 300 1900/1000)."

A small circle in the center of the mage's shield began to glow light blue. It radiated light energy, showing it's magical properties.

"Why bother summoning that mage?" Zane questioned.

Lightly smirking, Illidan replied "I have a very good reason. You see, by removing Breaker's Spell Counter, he can destroy one spell or trap card on the field. See where this is going?"

Zane confusingly glanced at Illidan's field, but then back at his own field. His eyes immediately went wide, as he knew what Illidan was after.

Seeing this, Illidan pointed at the lone spell card on Zane's field, saying "Breaker, destroy his Future Fusion!"

Leaping into the air, the mage aimed his shield straight at the spell card. The small circle began to glow more brightly, as energy started crackling around the same spot. In an instant, a blast of light blue light came pouring out of the shield and struck the spell card, causing the card to explode. Slowly, the mage returned to the field, seemingly smirking at his handy work.

"Without your Future Fusion card still on the field, your dragon goes to the Graveyard as well!" declared Illidan.

The three headed dragon roared loudly as suddenly it imploded, sending debris everywhere. Smoke filled the stage, forcing Zane to place a hand over his face in case debris hit him. Once the smoke cleared, only the weaker mechanical dragon remained on Zane's field.

Zane could only growl in frustration as Illidan said "Of course, there is a price my mage pays by me removing his counter. He loses the bonus he just gained by having his Spell Counter (1900 – 300 1600/1000), but it's a price well worth paying."

Pointing at the weaker machine dragon, Illidan called out "Breaker, let's clear the field. Attack Proto-Cyber Dragon with Magical Sword Slash!"

The maroon mage immediately rushed into action. With his arm holding his sword stretched out, he rushed straight for the machine dragon, which stood it's ground. In an instant, the mage vanished, but soon reappeared behind the dragon in a finished attacking stance. The dragon let out a small mechanical roar as suddenly three slash marks appeared across it's body. In a thunderous explosion, the dragon blew up into many pieces of scrap metal, leaving nothing to protect Zane.

"That's enough destruction for one turn. You have a go at it." (Illidan 6100, Zane 3300)

Once again, the crowd was in total shock. In a single set of turns, the tables had been turned once more, putting Illidan again in the lead.

"I can hardly believe it! He played an excellent strategy!" Bastion exclaimed in shock.

Nodding, Alexis added "Yeah, it's hard to believe that he just took Zane's dragon down so easily."

"_Hang on Zane. You can do this, I know it._" Syrus silently thought as he watched intently.

"He just won't give up." Chazz remarked, sounding somewhat impressed.

Looking on with a shocked expression, Hasselberry finally said "Sam Hill, this duel is fast paced, not to mention action packed! I don't know who will win this one."

"I told you guys this duel would be pretty sweet. Man, I just wish I could duel either of them right now!" Jaden said with giddiness in his voice.

Marie threw a look back at the students and smiled. Looking back to the field, she smiled, mentally saying "_That's the way Illidan. Just keep fighting. I know you can win this._"


	29. Chapter 29: Strategy vs Heart, Pt 2

**Hey there everyone! Well, I'm sure you're all wondering why I'm posting early this week. No, I haven't finished, as much as I'd like to have, lol. I'm posting early this week due that I have a family meeting over my grandpa (called by the doctors) to discuss his current state and what they think our options are. I probably won't be back till late tomorrow, so to be fair, I decided to post early. Plus, I'm thinking of possibly posting 3 chapters this week, so we'll see. I really didn't do anything this past weekend. I washed my car Saturday, and that was about it, other than play Naruto Uzamaki Chronicles 2. Heh, that's lots of fun. I have fun annoying Marie with me performing the Sexy Jutsu, hehe.**

**Last time, the duel between Illidan and Zane heated up, with Illidan taking the lead and taking down Cyber End Dragon. Does this mean Zane is on the verge of losing, or will he manage to take down Illidan?**

**Alright, time once more for the great part of my mornings! Review Time!**

**Isis the Sphinx: (/Points angry claw at you!\) Curse you and your Geometry! Lol, yes, good luck to that fun math in college. (/Chuckles darkly.\) Thanks for the comments.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Heh, possibly, but you never know. Yep, the plot is coming soon. Heh, that's good. Yes, the week went fast, much like the weekend…**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Lol, yes, it is, hehe. Thanks, heh. Yes, a good direct attack with a fairy monster is far better than the dunce cap. Heh, yes, Illidan's very cryptic about his seals, thus making everyone (except me, lol) wonder how his seals were set up. Yes, he has plenty to worry about, thus he don't want to share too much info. True, Illidan knows the strengths and weaknesses of Cyber End Dragon, but yeah, Zane won't go down easily. Thank you for the comments.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Heh, thanks.**

**ardee: That sucks. I sometimes ponder myself if my alerts are broke or not. Thank you. Heh, glad you really liked the last few chapters. Hmm, I like the sound of master of mages and mechanical monstrosity. I did think about doing a Kaiba vs. Zane duel, but I figured the way Illidan handled his Cyber Dragons was close as it was going to get. Yes, I thought it was a good idea to not do the duels that Illidan and Marie had to get to this duel with Zane. It would have been another 3 or 4 duels to write, plus, lots of chapters and I know everyone wants to get down to the big duels instead. I had thought of doing the Illidan vs. Marie duel, just to show how far the two had come, but it made little sense to do a repeat of the last two stories. Heh, the two have dueled so many times in the past that it was much easier to just skip it. Actually, no, the Sacred Beasts are still in their sealed chamber. Illidan was just saying that the barrier he had to protect them was broken. The cards are there, but the barrier broke that kept them locked within it is all. Later on you'll see he took care of that, hehe. Hmm, Zell a mysterious antagonist? Possibly, or possibly not, lol. Thanks for the comments. As for Yugi and Co., eh, we'll see. They had their showing in the beginning, lol. Maybe they'll appear though, you never know. I could write them in, somehow. Thanks again for the comments.**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Yep, the clash of the titans rolls on. Yes, good observation that Illidan once had the Cyber Dragons in his deck. Currently though, they haven't been seen since his duel with Kaiba. Hmm, are they there or not now…**

**Ok, that's it for me. Thanks everyone who submitted a review. I'm glad to see a lot of familiar reviews, but remember, I do like seeing new people also. Everyone feel free to leave me one. In the mean time, I'm trying to work on finishing this story. If I ever do, I'll be able to post more of this story. Hopefully I will soon.**

**In the meantime, everyone enjoy this new chapter. Later!**

**Chapter 29**

Drawing his next card, Zane lightly frowned at it. After a moment, he finally said "I play the spell card Different Dimension Capsule! With this, I can select a card from my deck and remove it from play for two turns. In two turns, it then returns to my hand."

A strange capsule like tomb slowly rose up from the ground in front of Zane. A card image appeared facing Zane, demonstrating he was placing something in the capsule.

Pulling his deck out, he fanned it open and picked a card and placed it in the removed from play slot. As he did, the card image lowered into the capsule, causing it to slowly sink into the ground, hiding itself once more. Reshuffling his deck, he placed it back in the deck slot, saying "That's all for me now Illidan." (Illidan 6100, Zane 3300)

"_He's taking an awfully big risk to wait two turns on that card. What could he have planned?_" Illidan silently pondered.

Steeling his resolve, he thought in his mind "_Still, that doesn't mean I can't end this duel. I just have to keep pressing on._"

Drawing his card, he looked at it and lightly frowned, but said "I summon Apprentice Magician (400/800)!"

A young male mage with blond hair that somewhat stood up, wore a red bandanna on his forehead and purple body armor that covered his body, except for his arms, with a green staff, appeared onto the field.

"When Apprentice Magician is summoned, his effect goes off. I now get to add one Spell Counter to a spell, trap, or monster card that can have them. So, that means Breaker gains another counter, meaning he gets stronger (1600 + 300 1900/1000)!"

The gem on the maroon robed mage's shield began to glow once more. Energy crackled around it, sending out small blue streaks into the air.

"Breaker, attack directly with Magical Sword Slash!"

Rushing forward, the maroon mage held out his sword, preparing to strike Zane. In a flash, he vanished, leaving no signs of where he went to. Moments later, he appeared behind Zane, his sword in a finished position. Soon enough, Zane cried out in pain as three slash marks began to glow where they had struck him. He fell to one knee, panting lightly, trying to work his way through the pain.

"Apprentice Magician, direct attack him also with Apprentice Burst!"

The younger mage nodded and leapt into the air, aiming his staff at Zane. A small flash of purple energy in the shape of a sphere was sent flying towards Zane, who could do nothing but take the hit head on. The blast wasn't as intense as the previous mage's sword slashes, but it was evident Zane was being worn down.

"To end my move, I activate Breaker's effect. I'll remove his counter (1900 – 300 1600/1000) in order to destroy your Different Dimension Capsule!"

Leaping into the air, the mage pointed his shield at the zone where a capsule the previous turn had risen. The energy around the gem on his shield began to crackle loudly as it charged up. Without warning, a blast of light blue energy went flying straight at the area. Slowly, the same capsule that had been lowered into the ground rose back up, instantly shattering under the stress of the beam.

"That'll do it for me." (Illidan 6100, Zane 1000)

Zane quietly drew his card. Once he had, the card image on the field suddenly began to glow as it rose up from where the capsule had once been.

"What's going on?" Illidan asked, unsure what was happening.

Smirking, Zane called out "Pretty simple Illidan. The card I removed from play last turn was the spell Card from a Different Dimension. When it's removed, it returns on my following Standby Phase and we each get to draw two cards."

Both picked up two more cards at the same time. Zane glanced over his hand and said "This is it! I play the spell Monster Reborn, bringing back my Cyber End Dragon (4000/2800) from the Grave!"

With a small thunderous explosion, the large mechanical three headed dragon reappeared on the field, letting out a metallic roar from each head.

Swinging his right arm around to point at the blonde mage, Zane called out "Cyber End Dragon, incinerate that mage with Super Strident Blaze!"

Roaring loudly, the three heads took aim, their jaws filling with white energy. Simultaneously, the three heads released their blasts, causing the three blasts to meld together. The combined force struck the blonde mage, decimating him instantly. The remainder of the blast struck Illidan, causing him to shield his face and body with his left arm. The blast caused a tremendous explosion and caused smoke to fill the field. As the smoke cleared, Illidan was barely standing.

Smirking once more, Zane called out "This isn't over yet Illidan…"

"I agree, because you triggered my mage's effect!" resounded Illidan.

Raising an eyebrow, Zane asked "What do you mean?"

Catching his breath finally, Illidan stood up straight and said "You see, when Apprentice Magician is sent to the Grave by battle, I get a new level two or lower Spellcaster type monster from my deck and set it on my field."

Pulling his deck out, Illidan skimmed through it till he picked a card and slapped it to his Duel Disk, causing a horizontal card image to appear on the field. Shuffling his deck, he stuck it back in the deck slot and shot a confident look at Zane.

Lightly smirking, Zane called out "Too bad that monster won't be much help. I activate the spell card De-Fusion! This means I can now separate my Cyber End Dragon back into the three Cyber Dragons (2100/1600)!"

The large three headed machine dragon glowed brightly for a moment. Once the glowing died down, three machine snake like dragons appeared on the field, each letting out a mechanical roar.

"Cyber Dragons, clear Illidan's field with Strident Blaze!"

Two of the machine snake creatures roared and opened their jaws, spewing out a stream of red flames. The first stream struck the maroon robed mage, causing him to yell out in pain as he was incinerated. Meanwhile, the second stream headed for the horizontal card image, which glowed, revealing a blonde haired mage, which was an exact duplicate of the mage destroyed earlier in the turn. He was struck head on and easily burned to a crisp.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan called out "Thanks Zane, you just destroyed my second Apprentice Magician (400/800), which means I get another level two or lower Spellcaster to play to the field."

Searching his deck quickly, Illidan pulled out a new monster and slapped it to his Duel Disk, saying "And there we go."

Growling with frustration, Zane said "Cyber Dragon, burn that last monster up with Strident Blaze!"

The final machine dragon roared, letting out a stream of flames like the others had. The blast headed for the horizontal card image, which glowed and revealed yet another blonde haired mage like the previous ones. Like the other two, this mage was taken down easily by the flames, leaving nothing behind.

As the flames died down, Illidan said with a smirk "Thanks once again Zane. I'll use Apprentice Magician's (400/800) once more!"

Searching through his deck once more, Illidan finally picked a card and slapped it to the field. A new horizontal card image appeared on the field, seemingly mocking Zane.

Frustrated, Zane said with a tint of irritation in his voice "I play the spell Polymerization, fusing my three Cyber Dragons back together to form Cyber End Dragon (4000/2800)!"

The three machine dragons began swirling together, forming a brilliant light on the field. As it died down, the three headed machine dragon from earlier in the turn was left, roaring loudly.

"You may have survived this turn, but you won't last much longer." (Illidan 2000, Zane 1000)

"Professor Illidan is in serious trouble now." Bastion said with some worry in his voice.

Nodding, Alexis added "He had the lead, but Zane just took a huge bite out of it. I think Zane has this one about wrapped up."

Syrus smiled slightly, saying "Come on big bro."

Jaden studied the field, and finally in a causal manner said "Guys, I don't think Professor Illidan is done. Remember, a duel isn't over till the last card is played, and I think he has some cards to play this turn!"

"He's finished you loser. There is no way he'll beat Zane now." Chazz said as he folded his arms over his chest.

"I wouldn't underestimate him soldier, because he has proven to be one tough customer." Hasselberry argued back.

Marie only looked on, silently calling to Illidan. "_Hang on. I know you can do this Illidan. Don't give up just yet, because I know you can win this._"

Back on the field, Illidan drew his next card and lightly smiled. "It's time I finished this duel, once and for all."

Smirking, Zane called out "You can try, but I highly doubt you can. Admit it Illidan, this duel is as good as over. Nothing in your deck can outmatch my Cyber End Dragon."

Nodding, Illidan replied "True, nothing in my deck can outmatch your dragon based on points alone, but I know something that can beat you! I flip summon my face down monster, so meet a new friend of mine. Rise up Magical Scientist (300/300)!"

An older man with purple hair, a set of goggles, a white lab coat, and a yellow set of robes appeared onto the field. He let out a small "Humph" as he stared at Zane.

"I next activate his special ability. At a cost of 1000 of my life points, I can special summon one level six or lower Fusion monster from my deck. So now, I pay a 1000 to bring out Dark Flare Knight (2200/800)!"

The older man got a gleam in his goggles as he began to glow. As Illidan's life points drained, a purple glow formed on the field. Slowly, rising from the glow was a warrior holding a flame orange sword dressed in black robes outlined with red. In his left hand was a shield with flaming designs. His helmet was in the design of a dragon's scaly head, with flame red designs burned in along the black. The only skin to be seen was his face and hands, which were uncovered.

"That warrior has too few a points to stop my dragon Illidan. I'm afraid you're wasting your time and life points." Zane smugly commented.

Smirking at this, Illidan called out "We'll see. Dark Flare Knight, attack that dragon with Flare Slash!"

Zane was completely shocked at the knight launched itself forward. Pulling his right arm out, allowing the sword to cut through the wind, the knight was soon met head on by the three headed dragon. With all his might, the knight attempted to cut into the dragon, but his sword shattered instead when he made contact with one of it's heads.

Chuckling, Zane called out "Cyber End Dragon, counter attack with Super Strident Blaze to finish this duel!"

The three headed dragon complied with it's master's orders, sending a burst of white energy from each head at the knight. The blasts struck simultaneously, incinerating the knight instantly.

Zane watched the blast hit, but was completely awestruck when Illidan's life points didn't change. "Why didn't you lose?" he questioned.

Smirking once more, Illidan replied "Simple Zane, my knight has some nice effects. First off, when he's destroyed in battle, I take zero damage to my life points, but his truly great effect is what happens when he gets to the Graveyard. I'm allowed to now special summon a new monster from my hand or deck. That monster is this, my Mirage Knight (2800/2000), which happens to be in my hand!

Upon slapping the card to his Duel Disk, Illidan smiled as a golden armored knight with a blue cape, large golden shoulder pads, a golden helmet that covered all but his mouth, and a large sickle like weapon in hand appeared onto the field.

Confused, Zane asked "But why summon him?"

"To beat you! Mirage Knight, attack with Mirage Scythe Slash!" responded Illidan.

Taking to the air, the knight charged forward, fully prepared to slash the powerful three headed dragon. Each of the heads of the dragon began building up power, each ready to strike down the weaker knight. Firing as one, the three heads released their blasts at the knight, confident that they would finish him off.

"You will fail to beat my dragon again Illidan." Zane pointed out, confident that his monster was safe.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan replied "I wouldn't be so sure Zane. You see, I neglected to tell you about my knight's special ability."

Sweat formed on Zane's forehead, as he asked "What is it?"

Smirking, Illidan replied "It's a simple one really. When I attack another monster on the field with my knight, he gains the same number of attack points as the monster he battles. Since I'm battling your dragon, that means he gains 4000 more attack points (2800 + 4000 6800/2000)!"

The golden knight suddenly began to glow as his strength increased. As the oncoming blasts from the dragon heads headed for him, the knight only charged forward. The blasts struck the knight easily, but through the explosion, the knight continued forward, his scythe glowing gold.

"THIS CAN'T BE!" Zane exclaimed in total shock.

"Oh it be! Mirage Knight, finish things off!" Illidan called back.

That said, the knight increased his speed and swung his large scythe at the dragon's three heads. With in a single swing, he beheaded the dragon, leaving three stumps where heads once where. As the knight was falling to the ground, he took another swing, making a large gash through the dragon's mid-section. Once the knight was far enough away, an explosion ensued, blowing scrap metal all over the field, along with a big plume of smoke. Zane only cried out in pain, as the blast engulfed him and the smoke covering his location.

After a few minutes, the smoke lifted, revealing Zane on one knee, panting heavily. His life point counter immediately began dropping, and soon hit zero, causing his Duel Disk to power down. Illidan's Duel Disk responded to Zane's power down, calling back the knight on the field and powering down.

Completely shocked, the crowd just all stood in awe. Finally, someone in the crowd started clapping, sending out applause to the two teachers who had fought it out.

Seeing things were over, the Chancellor finally grabbed the microphone and said "The winner of the first annual Teacher's Tournament is Professor Illidan Stormrage, Headmaster of Slifer Dorm!"

Everyone in the Dueling Arena began to cheer and applaud the two duelists even more. Illidan lightly smiled at everyone and gave a thumbs up towards Marie, who only smiled and blew him a kiss, making Illidan lightly blush.

Forcing the blush away, Illidan walked over to Zane. Kneeling down, he asked "Are you alright?"

Zane finally caught his breath and nodded, but averted his eyes. "This is my first loss since I started Duel Academy."

Lightly smiling, Illidan nodded, saying "It's alright. Sometimes you win some, you lose some. You gain from your losses, just like you gain from your wins."

Nodding, Zane looked up at Illidan and lightly smiled. Seeing this, Illidan put a hand on his shoulder, saying "Besides, you have nothing to be ashamed of. That was one of the best duels I've had in a long time. If not for you destroying my last Apprentice Magician, I would have most likely lost that duel."

Lightly chuckling, Zane replied "Maybe. Still, I want a rematch with you one day, to see how much I've learned."

The pair stood, with Illidan offering his hand, saying "You've got it."

Shaking his hand, Zane replied "Good, because I won't forget! I intend on winning next time."

"We'll see." Illidan gingerly said.


	30. Chapter 30:  Tag Team Grades, Pt 1

**Hey there everybody! Well, yesterday was pretty good. I went to the meeting and missed most of the day of work for it, but I made up all but 2 hours of work, so it's all good. The good news is, grandpa is most definitely getting better. They backed his trachea back down from size 8 to size 6, meaning it's a smaller one. There is only one size smaller than that, which they are hoping to get in him soon, and the center wishes to remove his trachea before sending him anywhere. Anyways, they had it capped off (a little cap goes over it), which he tolerated rather well while I was there, and it allowed him to talk. I was shocked when I heard him talking, but it felt so good to hear him. His voice was a little garbled, but I could tell what he was saying. Heh, it just was really good to hear him say something again in his normal voice. At any rate, the rehab center reported their findings and predictions to me, my grandmother, and mom. They are hopeful for him, but he has to leave the center next week due that Medicare is cutting him off. They gave the options of take him home and have someone come in to work with him, or send him to a skilled nursing home where he could get some more rehab. Plus, if when his time at the home ends, he has the option of possibly going back up to the rehab center. My grandmother decided to send him to the skilled nursing home, which I must admit sounded the best, plus he'll be closer to home due that there is some closer than Morgantown. Other than that, they said they wish grandpa had come to them a week later due that he'd have been more ready for rehab then, but the hospital pushed him out the door and down there, so they had no choice but to do what they could. But he's really improving, which I'm thankful for.**

**Alright, getting back to the story now. Last time, Illidan defeated Zane in their duel using his Dark Flare Knight and Mirage Knight combo. The question is, what now?**

**Thank you guys for the reviews btw. So, without further ado, it's review time!**

**x-knight20: Heh, thanks. I like Mirage Knight as well. I have one in my personal collection, but the sad thing is, I don't have a Dark Flare Knight to use it with, lol. As for Illidan having Yugi's Red Dark Magician, nah, he don't have it. In fact, he has neither the red or purple one.**

**Wingless Dove: Thanks for reviewing, and thank you for the comments.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: LOL! Yeah, I've been trying to get inspired, but it's just not happening, lol. But there is good news on that end at least. I'm sort of taking time, like half an hour to an hour, to work on my story. I've nearly finished, but it'll take a bit of time still. Thanks about grandpa. Glad you liked the chapter.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Thank you. Yeah, their designs are pretty cool. Ah, that sucks. I remember I had to take ACTS for college entrance. I took it 3 times to try and raise it, and ironically, the first time was the best of them, hehe.**

**Alright, that's it for today. Thank you everyone for your reviews. I hope you all enjoy this chapter. Later!**

**Chapter 30**

Nearly two months after the Teachers Tournament, things were continuing as normal. The end of the Tag Team Tournament in Illidan and Marie's class had finally come to an end.

Most of the students had performed well throughout the tournament. The first eight teams eliminated had taken their losses with dignity, as did some of the next set of teams that lost. A few teams had blown up towards the end of duels, but for the most part, the teams seemed to get along, except for a couple.

The three real exceptions were ones that everyone figured wouldn't get along, yet all three made it to the semi-finals. It had been Jaden and Chazz in the semi-finals facing off with Ed and Al Heiderich in one match, and in the other match it was Mariah and Bastion battling it out with Syrus and Hasselberry.

Even though Jaden and Chazz argued throughout the duels they had been in, they proved to be a seriously powerful team. Against the Heiderich brothers in the semi-finals, the two put aside their differences and managed to beat the alchemy wielding brothers, who were in complete shock that the pair managed to stop them from winning.

In the other semi-finals round, Syrus and Hasselberry argued constantly, but Mariah and Bastion seemed to pull things together. They worked hard as a team, and were on the verge of winning when finally Syrus and Hasselberry worked together. Combined, the two managed to wipe out their competition at long last.

The finals were plenty exciting as well. The four were friends, and knew one another well enough to see how the other worked. The duel was long and hard, and after several near losses, the teams came down to having only a hundred life points a piece. Together, Jaden and Chazz managed to put the final nail in the coffin, barely beating out the combined effort of Syrus and Hasselberry.

Both Jaden and Chazz were extremely happy that they won and would soon be facing off against a former set of Tag Team Champions from the Pro League. The teamwork between the two had improved as well, with them semi-getting along throughout their duels.

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The day for the final duel in the Tag Team Tournament finally came. The students all crowded into the Dueling Arena, all hoping to see who the former champs were.

At long last, time for the competitors to enter the ring came. Both Chazz and Jaden entered the ring, with Jaden wide eyed and happy and Chazz with his arms crossed. The two watched as Illidan and Marie entered the ring, but noted that they wore Duel Disks.

"Why do you two have Duel Disks on?" Chazz questioned.

Giving him a smirk, Marie replied "Pretty simple Chazz, we're here to duel."

"Uh, did you two forget about today's class being me and Chazz facing off with the former Tag Team Champions?" Jaden asked, unsure of what was going on.

Smiling at him, Illidan smoothly said "No, we didn't. The truth of the matter is the two of you are looking at the former champions."

"NO WAY!" Jaden exclaimed with a big grin.

Grumbling at Jaden's actions, Chazz sarcastically said "As if you two are former champs… If you are, prove it!"

"I thought you might say that." Marie commented as she looked at Illidan and nodded.

Walking over to the front row of the seats in the Dueling Arena, Illidan picked up a bag that sat with his and Marie's usual teacher materials. Walking back into the ring, Illidan opened it and pulled out two golden belts.

Chazz's jaw dropped as he closely inspected the belts, while Jaden's eyes only brightened even more. The entire audience all gaped as well, shocked at what they saw.

"See right there Chazz, that would be mine and Illidan's names inscribed, along with the official seal of the Pro League insignia, proving they are official. As you can also see, it has the date we won the titles as well." Marie pointed out smugly.

At long last, Chazz managed to regain his voice, saying "I… I didn't know they were…"

"This is going to be so totally sweet!" Jaden said, with extreme enthusiasm in his voice.

Putting the belts back in the bag, Illidan placed them back with the remainder of their things they brought to the arena. Getting back on stage, Illidan smiled at Marie.

Turning to both Jaden and Chazz, Illidan said "The rules are simple. Like all the other tag team duels the two of you faced off in, we each get to take one turn before you can attack. Also, like the tournament, our life points will be linked, and each teams starts with 8000 life points. Finally, you can defend your partner with spell, trap, and monster cards. If you use your monster to defend your partner, the monster is sent into defense mode to protect them. Any questions?"

Neither Chazz nor Jaden asked any, causing Illidan to nod, and say "Good luck to you both."

Both Illidan and Marie extended their hands to the two. Chazz grudgingly shook hands with Marie, while Illidan and Jaden shook hands. Turning away from both Chazz and Jaden, both Illidan and Marie walked to their positions, as did Chazz and Jaden.

Once in position, Illidan looked over at Marie, saying "Ready for this dear?"

With a sly smirk, Marie nodded, saying "Sure am. How about you?"

Returning the nod, Illidan smiled, saying "Same here."

Jaden and Chazz finally made it to their positions, with Illidan straight in front of Jaden and Marie in front of Chazz. Calling out, Illidan said "The turn order shall be Chazz, then Marie, followed by Jaden, and finally me."

The group nodded, causing each to activate their Duel Disks all activated at once, each extending their retractable arm. The four drew their first five cards afterward and all simultaneously said "Game on!"

Drawing his sixth card, Chazz started to say something when Jaden said "Chazz, remember to take it easy early on. We don't want to jump the gun."

"Zip it you loser." Chazz commented.

Looking back at his hand, Chazz said "As I was saying before someone interrupted me, I play the spell Graceful Charity! This means three new cards for me, so long as I send two to the Graveyard when I finish."

Picking up three cards, Chazz picked two from his hand and placed them in the Graveyard. As they slid in, he said "I toss Ojamagic and Armed Dragon LV8 to the Graveyard."

Smirking, he continued with "Oh, by the way, when I send the spell card Ojamagic to the Graveyard, it's effect goes off. That means I can now add the three Ojama brothers to my hand from my deck."

Pulling his deck out, Chazz sorted through it till he found his three monsters. Placing his deck back, Chazz said "I next play the spell Ojama Get Ride! Thanks to this, I can send the three Ojama brothers to the Graveyard and special summon three level four or lower Machine type monsters from my deck to the field in defense."

The faintly visible images of the yellow, green, and black creatures that always pestered Chazz became visible, with the three crying out "Please boss, don't do this to us!"

"Sorry boys, but I got to!" Chazz said as he placed all three cards in his Graveyard slot. The three barely visible creatures were then suddenly sucked in, leaving no sign of them.

"Now I play X-Head Cannon (1800/1500), Y-Dragon Head (1500/1600), and Z-Metal Tank (1500/1300)!"

Placing all three cards on his Duel Disk horizontally, three new machine monsters began appearing. The first was a blue and yellow robot that floated in the air with a pair of cannon barrels sticking out it's chest. Next, a red machine dragon appeared with a soft mechanical growl. Finally, a blue and yellow tank like creature appeared with a small roar.

"Alright, I now combine the three, so form up to create the XYZ-Dragon Cannon (2800/2600)!"

The three creatures launched into the air by using their thrusters. Slowly, the blue and yellow robot combined with the red dragon, whose wings detached from it's body. The pair then slid on top of the blue and yellow tank, finally locking the three together as one creature.

"To end, I'll place this face down, for later." (Chazz, Jaden 8000; Marie, Illidan 8000)

Unfazed by Chazz's move, Marie drew her card and said "Nice way to begin things Chazz, but I'm afraid you did exactly what you did last time we faced off."

"That was a fluke last time!" Chazz snapped back.

Shrugging, Marie replied "Call it what you will Chazz, but I guess me and Illidan will have to show you the truth. I'll start things off by summoning my Warrior of Zera (1600/1600)."

A man with green gloves, a green helmet with dog like ears sticking up from it, a green piece that covered part of his chest and shoulders, a pair of blue pants, a red scarf wrapped around his neck, and dark brown skin with well toned muscles appeared. In his right hand was a blue sword and his left held some kind of chain that hooked to the sword.

Chazz and Jaden both looked confused at the monster, unsure what to make of it. Seeing this, Marie asked "Surprised I have a Warrior type monster in my deck?"

Both nodded, causing her to lightly smirk, saying "Well, don't be too surprised. He's here for a reason. I next activate the field spell Sanctuary of the Sky!"

Opening the end of her Duel Disk, a slot shot out. Placing a card in the slot, the field suddenly began to change. The arena became a large blue sky with fluffy white clouds and a large white ancient building floating behind Marie. The building itself had stairs leading up to the entrance, with an angel statue on the top of it.

"Thanks to this field spell, whenever a Fairy type monster does battle, the Battle Damage is reduced to zero for the controller. That means if you fight my fairies and destroy them, I lose no points."

Chazz lightly cringed at this, knowing Marie had a deck full of Fairy type monsters. Seeing him cringe, Marie lightly giggled innocently and said "Oh yeah, I'm sacrificing Warrior of Zera in order to…"

"Wait, you already had a Normal Summoning this turn, so you can't sacrifice your monster!" Chazz let out quickly.

Wagging a finger, Marie replied "Not true. This is a special summon, which allows me to sacrifice this monster. So now, I special summon Archlord Zerato (2800/2300)!"

The green armored warrior vanished in a flash of light. A new light emerged from the ancient building. Slowly, rising from the light, a creature with large white wings, that formed around his upper chest and a red scarf covered his neck, a white helmet with red horns, a blue skirt like appeared around the waist, a powerful curved blade in his right hand, and purple skin that lightly gleamed as the creature fully appeared on the field.

Chazz and Jaden both looked on, each in somewhat shock. Seeing their shock, Marie smirked once more, saying "I activate Zerato's effect. By sending a Light attribute monster to my Graveyard, I can destroy all monsters on your field Chazz. So, I'll send my Layard the Liberator to my Grave, meaning this is the end of the road for that scrapheap!"

As the monster card slowly slid into the Graveyard slot, the purple skinned warrior drew his saber back. In a single stroke, the sword made an energy wave, which went slicing through the machine monster like a hot knife through butter. The machine immediately exploded on contact, making Chazz cover his face to keep from being hit by debris.

Seeing Chazz growl in frustration, Marie smirked once more and said "I'll place a card face down. Your go Jaden." (Chazz, Jaden 8000; Marie, Illidan 8000)

Quickly drawing his card, Jaden smiled, saying "Sweetness. Check this out Professors Stormrage. I summon Elemental Hero Bubbleman (800/1200)!"

A human like creature with a white cape, two silver air tanks on his back, a light blue helmet that covered all but his mouth, the same colored shoulder covers, gloves, and boots, with dark blue filling in the spaces missing, and a small blaster like attachment on his right arm appeared. He had a small smile on his face, seemingly confident in his abilities.

"When Bubbleman is all alone on my field, I get to draw two extra cards."

Picking up two more cards, Jaden commented with a smile "Sweet! I play the spell Polymerization, fusing Bubbleman with Elemental Hero Clayman (800/2000) from my hand to create Elemental Hero Mudballman (1900/3000) in defense."

A stone like large monster with yellow painted feet and edges of shoulder pads, with dark grey filling the rest of his body in, except for his red domed head and a small black circle that was around his neck appeared beside the blue hero monster. The two then began to swirl together, forming a new monster that was made up of large dark grey spheres for the most part. His head resembled the blue monster, but was domed like the clay creature. The creature took a kneeling stance on one knee and put his arms in a defensive cross in front of his body.

"To end, I'll throw down a few face downs. That's it." (Chazz, Jaden 8000; Marie, Illidan 8000)

Picking up a new card, Illidan lightly smiled. "I summon Silent Magician LV4 (1000/1000)!"

A small mage in white robes with white gloves, blue boots, an odd white hat with a little blue on an ornament, blue spandex like material covering it's arms, and a small scepter then appeared on the field. The mage looked rather young, and had long silver hair.

"To end, I'll place these three cards face down." (Chazz, Jaden 8000; Marie, Illidan 8000)

Drawing his card, Chazz frowned, and was about to say something when Illidan called out "Before you do anything else Chazz, let me inform you of my mage's special ability. Whenever you or Jaden draw a card, my mage gains a Spell Counter. For each Spell Counter he gains, he also gains 500 attack points (1000 + 500 1500/1000)!"

The small white mage began glowing, as his power seemingly increased. He lightly smirked, seemingly daring Chazz to attack him.

Growling at the irritation, Chazz replied "Big deal! In a turn or so I'll take care of that problem. In the meantime, I summon my Masked Dragon (1400/1100) in defense."

A green dragon with red running down it's neck to the end of it's tail appeared onto the field. The dragon's long neck was curled up, with it's green wings pulled in defensively.

"That'll be enough for now." (Chazz, Jaden 8000; Marie, Illidan 8000)

Lightly giggling as she drew, Marie said "Only because you have no strategy against my monster."

"I'll take your monster out soon!" Chazz snapped back.

"We'll see. In the meantime, I'll send another Light attribute monster to the Graveyard. So, I'm sending Herald of Green Light (300/500) to the Graveyard for Zerato's effect. Say bye-bye to your monsters guys!"

As the monster card slid into the Graveyard slot, the purple skinned creature leapt up into the air and made a horizontal slash in the air. An energy wave formed and went rushing forward, easily destroying the green dragon and the large dark grey sphere monster.

"Next, I'll summon Royal Knight (1300/800)."

A white armored knight with some green/blue skin and white metallic wings with a sword appeared on the field.

"Royal Knight, direct attack Chazz with Royal Fairy Slash!"

Racing forward, the white knight pulled back his sword and prepared to strike Chazz.

As the knight was about to hit Chazz, he called out "I activate my trap card, Call of the Haunted! That means I can bring back one monster from …"

Lightly giggling innocently, Marie shook her head, pointing at her face down card. It slowly revealed itself, causing Marie to say "Not quite Chazz. I activate the spell card Mystical Space Typhoon. That means I can destroy your trap card, and without it, your monster can't return from the Graveyard!"

Chazz was in utter shock as a twister struck his trap card, rendering it useless. He didn't have time to recover though, for the charging knight was suddenly upon him, striking him hard with it's sword. Chazz slid back slightly, but remained standing.

"Zerato, why don't you show Chazz your real strength!? Hit him directly with Angel Wing Burst!"

The wings of the warrior began glowing immediately. Pointing his two wings at Chazz, small jagged diamond like structures formed. Suddenly, the structures were sent rushing forward, seemingly preparing to strike Chazz.

"I don't think so! I activate my spell card, Flute of Summoning Kuriboh! Thanks to this spell card, I get to special summon my pal, Winged Kuriboh (300/200) in defense!" called out Jaden.

A brown fur ball like creature with purple eyes, small green clawed hands and feet, and a set of white wings appeared in a defensive stance on the field.

"Kuriboh, defend Chazz!" commanded Jaden.

Nodding, the small winged creature took up a defensive stance in front of Chazz, taking the hit head on. An explosion ensued, with plenty of smoke. As the smoke cleared, Chazz appeared completely fine, but the small brown creature was gone.

Throwing a glare at Jaden, Chazz mumbled "I'd have been fine you slacker."

"Yeah, you're welcome Chazz." Jaden replied with a smile.

Smiling at seeing Jaden attempting to be a team player, Marie called out "Nice job. Still, that won't stop me and Illidan. I place a card face down and end my move." (Chazz, Jaden 6700; Marie, Illidan 8000)


	31. Chapter 31: Tag Team Grades, Pt 2

**Hello once more everyone. Well, this week has been pretty cool. I talked to my sister last night, and she told me my grandfather talked to her on the phone, which was cool. His memory is somewhat intact, although some stuff he can't remember. Still, he does remember some stuff from long ago, but more recent events is a no go. Anyways, her and my mom are coming up for the weekend to visit grandpa and my grandma. Mom goes back early next week, but my sister is going to stick around till Friday. At any rate, grandpa is doing well from what I understand. Things are just moving along.**

**Last time, Illidan and Marie revealed that they were the former tag team champions that both Chazz and Jaden would face. Can the unlikely duo of Chazz and Jaden overcome Illidan and Marie, or are the former champs going to be more than handful for the pair?**

**Let's do this! Review time once more!**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Actually, no, they never faced Yugi and Seto in a tag team duel. Well, at least that I wrote. Think back to **_**Tournament of Power**_**. I wrote in there that they became tag team champions to like a pre-version of the Pro-League. It's explained in the chapter a bit more what happened when the Pro-League came into existence.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Heh, I had originally thought of writing that duel, but then I realized, that would take some finagling to do. I'd only have mostly what Banner used, and lol, split that by two and you get one hard duel to write. Lol, yes, it does sound like a cheesy episode of Power Rangers. Yes, grandpa is doing better. Thanks for the comments as always.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Glad to hear it, hehe. Nice dance btw.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thank you, and yeah, grandpa is doing better. He keeps getting better and better each time I see him it seems like.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Lol, yeah, Chazz sorta does remind me of Seto from Battle City also. Marie (the one I married, hehe) told me I really portrayed Chazz like he should be in this story. Yes, Ramen is good!**

**Thank you everyone for your continuing reviews. I'm so happy to see them each time I come to answer my reviews.**

**Again, thanks everyone, and I hope you enjoy this chapter. Later!**

**Chapter 31**

Picking up his next card, Jaden opened his mouth to say something, but Illidan interrupted with "Sorry to be a bother, but let me remind you two about my mage's special ability. He gains another 500 attack points thanks to your draw Jaden (1500 + 500 2000/1000)."

Seeing the white mage glow again, Chazz muttered to Jaden "That mage is going to be a problem."

"Yeah, I know Chazz. Don't worry, I have a plan. First, I'll summon Elemental Hero Sparkman (1600/1400)!"

Sparks began filling the field as a creature in blue and gold appeared. He wore what looked like a blue spandex with gold armor covering it on his shoulders, chest, wrists, and feet. On his back were two wing-like structures as well. His head showed no signs of eyes, or a mouth, which caused most to think he wore a helmet of some kind.

"Next, I activate the spell card Common Soul. Thanks to this, I get to select one monster on my field, so I pick my Sparkman. Next, I'm allowed to special summon a Neo-Spacian from my hand, so I pick my Neo-Spacian Grand Mole (900/300)!"

A light orange mole like creature with drill like shoulder pads and sharp clawed hands and feet appeared on the field.

"With Common Soul on the field, all of Grand Mole's attack points are shared with Sparkman (1600 + 900 2500/1400)."

The blue electrical warrior lightly glowed as the mole's energy seemed to be shared with him.

"Grand Mole, attack Marie's Archlord Zerato with Drill Bit Smash!"

Nodding, the mole prepared to attack. His two drill bit shoulder pads lifted and formed a helmet around his head, creating a single drill. The drill began to spin as the mole leapt forward at the stronger warrior creature.

Marie only looked at the creature charging, somewhat confused. "I don't understand why you're attacking."

Smirking, Jaden replied "You'll see."

The mole finally reached the purple skinned warrior, who seemed to take offense to the mole approaching him. Furious for it invading his space, the warrior struck the mole with his saber, causing the mole to stop it's drilling and reveal it's head as it was flung backwards. Without warning, a small black hole opened, sucking in both the mole and the warrior. The two monster cards each glowed on both Jaden and Marie's Duel Disks before returning to the respected hands.

"What!?" Marie asked in complete shock.

Lightly chuckling, Jaden responded "Check this out Teach. When Grand Mole engages in battle, instead of being destroyed, he returns to my hand and returns the monster he battled with to that owner's hand. Oh yeah, this all occurs at the beginning of the Damage Step, and I take zero damage for the move."

All Marie could do was gasp at this. "But that means…" she began.

"That means your Archlord Zerato is useless to you now. He's outmaneuvered you, my dear." Illidan calmly stated.

Marie gave Illidan a death glare that said he'd pay for the comment later that day. Turning back to Jaden, she softly smiled, saying "Well played, but that don't help you too much."

Nodding, Jaded replied "True. After all, my Common Soul is destroyed due that I returned Grand Mole to my hand, so Sparkman does get weaker (2500 – 900 1600/1400). Still, I managed to take the field back."

Chuckling again, Jaden continued with "And, I did help make things easier. Sparkman, attack her Royal Knight with Static Shockwave!"

Leaping into the air, the electrical warrior extended his right arm towards the white knight. Electricity began to build up immediately in his palm. With ease, he thrust the blast forward, striking the white knight, causing it to explode into many pieces.

"I'll end my move." (Chazz, Jaden 6700; Marie, Illidan 8000)

Drawing his next card, Illidan calmly said "Looks like I need to regain control of this duel. I summon Breaker the Magical Warrior (1600/1000)."

A maroon robed mage with a maroon colored cape appeared on the field. In his left hand was a powerful shield that had a gem in the center, and in his other hand was a strong sword. His head was mostly covered, except for a small bit of his blue skin around his mouth.

"When summoned, Breaker gains one Spell Counter, which raises his attack points by 300 (1600 + 300 1900/1000)."

The gem on the mage's shield began to crackle with energy as it glowed light blue. Small sparks of light blue energy could be seen flying into the air along the gem, giving it a more mystical look.

"I activate Breaker's effect, which allows me to remove his Spell Counter in order to destroy a spell or trap card on the field. My target shall be…"

Thinking momentarily, Illidan finally pointed at Jaden's face down card, saying "Your card Jaden!"

Leaping into the air, the mage pointed his shield at the face down card. In a flash, energy pulsed out from the gem, sending a blast of crackling light blue energy at the card. The card was struck hard and forced face up, revealing it to be some kind of trap. It was instantly shattered by the force, leaving Jaden only his monster to use.

"Thanks for that." Jaden said with a smile.

Confused, Illidan asked as his mage touched back down on the field "What do you mean thanks?"

Lightly chuckling, Jaden showed him the trap card that was just shattered, saying "You destroyed my trap card called Hero Medal. When destroyed, it goes to my deck instead of my Graveyard. Next, I get a new card from my deck."

Placing the card back in his deck, Jaden shuffled and drew a new card. Smirking, Illidan said "True, you got a new card, but my mage gets stronger again (2000 + 500 2500/1000)."

The small white mage glowed once more, making him smile a bit with confidence.

"Way to go dork! You made his monster even stronger!" Chazz darkly said with a scowl.

Rubbing the back of his head, Jaden said "Oops, my bad."

Smirking at the bantering between Chazz and Jaden, Illidan cleared his throat, saying "Sorry to interrupt you two, but it's still my move. Silent Magician, attack Jaden's Sparkman with Silent Scepter Blast!"

Leaping into the air, the mage pointed his small staff at the blue and gold warrior. Without warning, a sphere of white energy launched from the staff and was sent hurtling towards the weaker warrior. He could only stand there as the blast assaulted him, easily destroying him, causing a small explosion with a bit of smoke blowing back towards Jaden.

"Breaker, direct attack Jaden now with Magical Sword Slash!"

Upon hearing his orders, the maroon robed mage rushed forward at breakneck speed, sword held out. He vanished in a flash, leaving Jaden scanning the room for the mage. The mage soon reappeared behind Jaden in a leaning forward stance with his right arm still held out with the sword. After a moment, Jaden cried out in pain as three red slash marks appeared on his body, draining away some of his life points.

"I think that's enough damage for this turn." (Chazz, Jaden 4200; Marie, Illidan 8000)

"This duel is quite interesting. Look at the teamwork between Professors Illidan and Marie. It's simply amazing." Bastion said with some shock.

Nodding in reply, Mariah added "Those two have always been so fierce when facing one another, yet are so strong when put together against an opponent. My mom and dad always talked about the two facing off with strong opponents. I remember only once watching them duel my mom and dad, and they weren't no slouches either at tag team dueling. In the end, they lost to this pair. No matter what, if one was in danger, the other would somehow protect the other. That's why they never lost a duel as a team."

Looking at Mariah confused, Alexis asked "You mean they've never lost a duel as a team?"

Seeing Mariah reply by shaking her head in a no fashion, Syrus asked "But how can that be? They're former champs!"

Lightly smiling, Mariah replied "True, but there is a reason for that. When the Pro League came into full swing, they were asked to join fulltime. Instead of accepting, the two turned it down, hence they were stripped of their titles. They were busy with other things at the time, so they willingly handed over their titles."

The group nodded with understanding, but Hasselberry asked "Still, they had to give up their titles. That's pretty low if you ask me."

Smiling at him, Mariah said "True, but I don't think they minded. They had things to do, and titles don't seem to matter to them too much. They don't do things to get recognized, so I think when that option came about, they just let it go."

"I see. That would explain it." Zane calmly commented.

All looked back at the field, with Alexis saying "If Chazz and Jaden don't work together, they'll lose this duel."

"Come on guys, you have to pull it together if you want a chance to win." Syrus commented.

All eyes returned to the field, hoping that they're friends would stand a chance. Still, doubt remained in each that watched, knowing that the two would possibly not fully cooperate with one another.

On the field, as Chazz picked up a card, Illidan called out "Don't forget, when you draw a card, my mage gets a new Spell Counter, meaning he gets stronger (2500 + 500 3000/1000)."

Lightly growling, Chazz replied "Fine! I play the spell Magical Mallet! With this, I can send any number of cards from my hand to my deck, shuffle, and redraw the same number I sent back. So, I'll send the four cards in my hand back to my deck."

Placing his cards within his deck, Chazz began shuffling and finally replaced his deck in it's slot. Picking up four cards at once, Chazz glanced over them, but was interrupted once again.

"Remember what I just said Chazz? Let me remind you. My mage gets stronger when you draw cards, which means he just gained 500 more attack points (3000 + 500 3500/1000)." Illidan chided.

Growling once more, Chazz silently sighed, but then smirked, saying "I summon V-Tiger Jet (1600/1800)!"

A gold and green blue machine tiger appeared on the field with a small roar. Black stripes covered his head, but the rest of his body was nearly normal looking, except for the jet engines sticking off metal wings.

"V-Tiger Jet, direct attack Marie with Machine Slash!"

Roaring, the tiger took to the air, more than ready to strike. As the tiger neared though, Marie showed no fear.

"Sorry Chazz, but you've not been paying much attention." Illidan called out.

Looking over, Chazz then noticed the three face down cards. Cringing, he prepared for the worst as Illidan said "I activate the trap card Magic Cylinder! Thanks to this, your attack is negated and the attack points of your monster are deducted directly from your life points!"

Two pink barrels with yellow trim on the ends and a question mark on each appeared in front of Marie. Both open ends of the barrels were pointed at Chazz. The mechanical tiger dove at Marie, but fell into one of the barrels instead. Within seconds, it came flying out the other end straight at Chazz with high speed. Before anyone knew it, the tiger struck Chazz hard, making him slide backwards a few feet.

"Chazz, you alright?" Jaden asked with concern.

Stepping forward, Chazz remarked "Yeah, I'm fine. I'll end my move." (Chazz, Jaden 2600; Marie, Illidan 8000)

Nodding, Marie drew her card and lightly sighed. "I have to end my turn." (Chazz, Jaden 2600; Marie, Illidan 8000)

Drawing his card, Jaden examined it when he heard Chazz say "Don't mess up Slacker! We haven't even touched their life points yet, so you'd better do something to change that."

Nodding, Jaden turned to face Illidan and Marie, saying "Alright, check this out! I play the spell The Warrior Returning Alive. That means I can return a Warrior type monster from my Graveyard to my hand, so I pick Elemental Hero Bubbleman."

Slowly, the monster card slid out of Jaden's Graveyard slot, who quickly picked up the card and said "And next, I summon him, so welcome back Bubbleman (800/1200)!"

The blue suited superhero reappeared onto the field once more, giving off a small smirk.

"Since I have no cards on the field that means I get to draw two new cards."

Picking up two, Jaden smirked, saying "And one of the cards I just drew was this, the spell Pot of Greed, meaning I get two more cards!"

Once more, Jaden grabbed two more cards from his deck and examined his hand. After a moment, he said "I play the spell Fusion Recovery. This card is pretty simple. I return one Polymerization card and one Fusion Material monster to my hand, so I'll pick Elemental Hero Sparkman."

Two cards slowly slid out of the Graveyard slot and into the waiting hands of Jaden, who smiled when he picked them up. "Thanks to me doing this, I can play Polymerization and fuse my Elemental Hero Bubbleman, Sparkman, and Avian (1000/1000) together to form Elemental Hero Tempest (2800/2800)!"

A flash of light appeared as the blue and gold armored warrior reappeared beside the blue hero, and finally a new hero appeared to the other side. He was green with large white wings with green on the top tips of them, a three clawed weapon on his left hand, and had a mask mostly made of what looked like feathers. Like the light blue warrior, only the lower part of his face was visible.

The three then swirled together, till a few beams of light formed around the swirling and a new creature came from it. It had mostly blue spandex and some gold armor that obviously came from the blue and gold warrior. On his right arm, instead of a hand, there was a single gun point. On his left hand was a claw like piece of armor. His back had a pair of metal white wings with green at the top. He had a pair of silver shoulder pads, and his muscular arms were bare. His face has a small blue visor covering his eyes with golden tips at the ends over his ears. He had long green hair lightly swayed with the wind surrounding his summoning.

"Not bad Jaden, but your monster isn't going to beat my mages." Illidan commented calmly.

Nodding, Jaden replied "True, but who said I had to. You see, I realize your Silent Magician LV4 is too strong, so I'm going to change the battlefield to give me an advantage. I play the field spell Skyscraper, which demolishes Marie's field spell!"

Marie could only gasp as she watched her ancient building collapse and the blue sky vanish. In it's place, several buildings began to shoot out of the ground, surrounding both teams. The sky darkened and had a full moon overhead, somewhat setting the stage.

"When Elemental Heroes do battle in here with a stronger opponent, they gain an additional 1000 attack points." announced Jaden to both Illidan and Marie.

Lightly gasping, Marie slowly said "That means…"

"That means my mage is outgunned." Illidan flatly stated, finishing Marie's statement.

Nodding, Jaden called out "Of course, that's not my plan at the moment. Instead, I have other things to do. Tempest, attack Marie directly with Glider Strike!"

Taking to the air, the new hero creature took aim at Marie with his gun arm. Slowly, it began to charge up, causing a bit of white light to form on the tip. With ease, the blast was shot at Marie, seemingly on a direct course for her.

"Not quite Jaden! I send Breaker in to defend!" Illidan said as he pointed towards Marie.

The maroon mage nodded at the command and rushed to Marie's aid. Taking up a defensive stance in front of her, the mage let the blast strike his shield. The blast proved to be too much for the mage to hand, causing his shield to shatter and let him take the hit instead.

"I'll throw down a face down to end." (Chazz, Jaden 2600; Marie, Illidan 8000)

Drawing, Illidan glanced up at Jaden's monster. "_It's too strong for me to take on directly, but maybe, just maybe, I can hold on a little longer and stop him._"

Smiling, Illidan called out "Since my mage has five Spell Counters, his effect goes off. By removing all five counters and sacrificing him, I can special summon Silent Magician LV8 (3500/1000)!"

The younger mage vanished in a flash of white light. As the light died down, in his place stood an older version of the mage that had just stood there. His body had matured, with it coming well toned muscles and longer hair.

"Jaden, your monster maybe the strongest with your field spell, but let's see him fight against this. I activate my face down Rush Recklessly, which adds 700 more attack points to my mage (3500 + 700 4200/1000) for this turn."

The white mage instantly began to lightly glow with a white aura as his strength increased once more.

Pointing at the hero warrior, Illidan called out "Silent Magician, attack Tempest with Silent Scepter Blast!"

Nodding to his master's command, the mage leapt into the air and pointed his staff at the green haired creature. Without warning, a sphere of white energy was sent flying towards the hero.

With only a few feet to spare before the hit Jaden said "Sorry, but Tempest isn't going anywhere! I activate his special ability, which allows me to send one card from my field to the Graveyard. This allows Tempest to not be destroyed in battle for this turn. So, I'll send my face down Transcendent Wings to the Grave!"

The face down card lightly glowed and vanished, causing the green haired monster to lightly glow. The sphere soon struck, causing a small explosion while the green haired monster managed to remain on the field.

Slightly smirking at the move, Illidan said "Not bad Jaden. I'll end my move (4200 – 700 3500/1000)." (Chazz, Jaden 1900; Marie, Illidan 8000)


	32. Chapter 32: Tag Team Grades, Pt 3

**Hey there everyone! Well, this weekend has been decent. Not much has happened really. I got some tires put on my car, and that was about it. I spent some time with Marie, caught up somewhat on my sleep, and managed to finish the ending to this story!**

**I know, many gasps has probably happened now, lol. But seriously, there is something that I need to mention. Even though I finished the ending to this story, by no means am I done. I have realized a few flaws in the story and am going back to fix them, plus I came up with another duel to write up that I think everyone will really like. I'm thinking maybe another week or so before I finish, pending on how much time I get to write on the duel and the other plot stuff. So please, I know I keep asking for this, but do have a little patience with me. I am planning on posting 3 chapters this week, so that is a good sign at the very least.**

**Last time, Illidan and Marie continued their onslaught against Jaden and Chazz in the tag team duel, with the loving couple showing the young students how they do things. Can Chazz and Jaden survive this duel, let alone make some sort of dent in Illidan and Marie's life points?**

**Alright, it's time once more! That's right, it's review time!**

**x-knight20: Thanks. I really like Silent Magician LV4 and LV8 also. At one time, I considered playing them, but then I realized how hard they would be to actually use. You'd have to center your deck around them, or find a way to keep them in play. Unfortunately, that's not easy, lol. Yep, it is great about grandpa. I get to see him today also. That's too bad about your dad having a stroke. I only hope grandpa does get back to where he once was, but I don't know. I haven't given up hope for him, so we'll see where he ends up.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. As for the small problems with this chapter, you are right, there are flaws. First up was about the Neo-Spacians. True, he did meet them in season 2, so him having them now is kind of odd. I realized that, but it is explained later about him getting them. Also, about Skyscraper, yeah, I realize it's effect only works on the person's turn that played it, but eh, I was following how season 1 played it for the most part. Lol, in actuality, I really didn't follow it to begin with, but with how it's played in real life. Then I realized recently with the chapter approaching that I should try to make it blend with the show. I've not seen anyone really have a turn after Jaden played Skyscraper after season 1, hence I never saw the changes. Lol, actually, come to think of it, usually it got destroyed or something in season 2 when it got played. Thanks for pointing out these errors though. Thanks about my grandpa.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Thank you. Eh, chocolate ice cream isn't bad, but I prefer other flavors, lol. Mmm, Superman flavored ice cream…**

**Glad you guys liked the chapter. This chapter is the final one for this duel, so it ends here, one way or another. I hope to see plenty of reviews when I get back Tuesday. Till then, take care everyone and enjoy!**

**Chapter 32**

"They can't keep this up much longer." Alexis said with worry reflecting in her voice and eyes.

"I agree. At this rate, they'll lose within a few more turns or so." Zane added.

"They just can't give up yet though. There has to be something they can do!" Syrus said with uncertainty in his voice.

Thinking for a moment, Mariah slowly said "I don't know Syrus. Unless they have the comeback of the century, I don't see how they can win this."

"Buck up soldiers. This ain't over yet!" Hasselberry said with confidence.

Looking at the commando, Bastion asked "How can you be so sure? The odds are totally against them."

"Because a duel isn't over till the last card is played." Hasselberry replied.

Nodding, Syrus perked up, saying "He's right. If there's one thing Jaden taught me, it's that a duel is never over till the last card is played. They can still do it, I know it!"

"We believe in you troops!" Hasselberry boomed, which reached both Chazz and Jaden on the field.

On the field, both Illidan and Marie smiled at Hasselberry's words. "So, are you going to let them down?" Illidan asked, somewhat taunting the duo across the field.

Growling, Chazz snapped "We're not finished! It's my move!"

Drawing his card, he smirked, saying "It's time the kid gloves came off. I play the spell card Ojamandala! By paying 1000 life points, I get to special summon from my Graveyard the three Ojama brothers! So welcome back Ojama Yellow (0/1000), Ojama Green (0/1000), and Ojama Black (0/1000)"

Three monsters appeared onto the field sitting on horizontal card images, each wearing pink bikini briefs. The first was a yellow one with antenna eyes and large red lips. The next was a green creature with one large yellow eye and his tongue sticking out. The last one was black with a big gut and a large nose.

"Thanks boss!" the three chimed at once as they turned towards Chazz.

Lightly smirking, Chazz called out "Time to show you two what I'm truly made of! I play the spell card Ojama Delta Hurricane! Rough'em up boys!"

The three creatures each laughed as they leaped into the air, each calling out their names. Finally, they leveled out and each bent over, facing one another with their butts. The three then cried out "Ojama Delta Hurricane!" as they placed their butts together. Once pressed together, the three began to spin rapidly, making Marie slightly gasp. Finally, the three crossed the field and widened the circle till it encompassed both Illidan and Marie's fields. The spinning ring of the three lowered, encircling the monsters and spell/trap card zones. Without a warning, a thunderous explosion ensued with a large puff of smoke forming. The three creatures then leapt back across the field, landing back on their horizontal card images.

Chuckling, Chazz called out "How do you like that!? I wiped out all your …"

As the smoke cleared, a lone figure was seen standing on the field, making the three creatures slightly shake.

"There's no way he survived that…" Chazz said in complete shock as the smoke cleared.

Standing on Illidan's field was the same white mage that had been there prior to the attack. A small white shimmering barrier surrounded the mage, which slowly vanished as the smoke dissipated.

"Problem Chazz?" Illidan questioned sarcastically.

Growling loudly, Chazz snapped "How did your mage survive!? He should have been destroyed by Ojama Delta Hurricane's effect!"

Nodding, Illidan replied "True, your Ojama Delta Hurricane should have destroyed him, but there is a problem. My mage has a special ability: he can't be destroyed due to spell cards. Of course, you have bigger problems too."

"And what might that be?" Chazz gruffly asked.

Smirking at his reaction, Illidan replied "You destroyed a face down card of mine that went off when you did. You see, you destroyed my Spell Calling spell card, which when destroyed, I get to pick a quick play spell card from my deck and show you, then I can set it."

Pulling his deck out, Illidan sorted through it till he found a card. Once he had found it, he showed it, saying "I pick this one, my De-Fusion."

Confused, Chazz only shrugged, saying "Big deal. I don't have a single Fusion…"

Realizing what he was saying, he glanced over at Jaden's field, knowing he had just put Jaden in danger. Slightly growling, Chazz said "I switch my V-Tiger Jet to defense and end." (Chazz, Jaden 900; Marie, Illidan 8000)

"Thanks Illidan." Marie said with a wink.

Nodding back to her, Illidan slightly smiled. Taking this time to draw, Marie said "I play Pot of Greed, meaning I get two new cards!"

Picking up two more cards, she said "I first play the spell card Celestial Transformation. This spell card lets me special summon one Fairy type monster from my hand with half of it's attack points, so I pick my Guardian Angel Joan (2800 / 2 1400/2000)."

A female angel with pink skin, a white dress that showed her many curves and golden wings appeared onto the field.

"Next, I play Monster Reborn, bringing back my Shining Angel (1400/800)."

A male angel with blonde hair, large blonde colored wings, well toned skin, and a white tunic appeared on the field.

"I sacrifice both in order to summon my favorite monster, Tyrant Dragon (2900/2500)!"

Both fairies vanished from the field, only to be replaced by a powerful dark orange dragon with massive wings, powerful arms and legs, with many sharp claws and fangs, a strong tail, and finally some sort of fins sticking off the side of it's head.

"Tyrant Dragon, attack Chazz's Ojama Green with Tyrant Flame!"

The dragon roared in response to it's commands and launched into the air, taking perfect aim on the green one eyeball monster. With a display of force, the dragon shot a stream of flames at the small green monster who shrieked.

"Boss!" the weak green creature cried out before shattering from the hit of the intense flames.

"I'm not done with you yet Chazz!" Marie called out. "I activate Tyrant Dragon's effect. See, since you still have a monster on the field, he can attack a second time. So, incinerate that Ojama Black!"

The dragon roared in response and took aim once more, sending another stream of flames out, this time directed at the small black creature.

"Oh the humanity!" cried out the dramatic black creature as it vanished in a flash from the flames.

Smirking confidently, Marie said "I guess I'll end my turn then." (Chazz, Jaden 900; Marie, Illidan 8000)

Looking at the field, Zane softly said to the others "I don't know what Jaden will do this turn."

Nodding, Bastion added "His position is quite difficult. If he attacks, Illidan will activate his De-Fusion, thus breaking his Tempest apart. If he doesn't attack, Illidan can still use his De-Fusion on his turn. It's quite a bad situation, any way you look at it."

"But he has to do something." Syrus said in a pleading voice.

Replying with confidence, Hasselberry said "Don't worry Private Truesdale, I'm sure the Serge will figure out what to do."

"I hope you're right, because if you're not, Jaden and Chazz will lose soon." Alexis said with seriousness in her voice.

On the field, Jaden drew his next card and gave a smile. "Alright, here goes something! Tempest, attack Marie's Tyrant Dragon with Glider Strike (2800 + 1000 3800/2800)!"

Glowing with power from the field, the green haired warrior took to the air and took aim at the dark orange dragon.

Before the warrior could fire his blaster, Illidan called out "Jaden, did you forget about me and my face down card!? I activate De-Fusion, which means your monster is splitting apart!"

The green haired warrior let out a small cry as suddenly he glowed and vanished. Three monsters took his place, one which was wearing two shades of blue, another in blue and gold, and finally the last was in green.

Smirking at this, Jaden replied "Actually I didn't."

Confused, Illidan asked "What do you mean you didn't?"

Lightly chuckling, Jaden replied "It's all good! I activate the spell card Instant Fusion! Now I can send my monsters to the Graveyard once more and bring back Elemental Hero Tempest (2800/2800)!"

The three creatures on the field began swirling back together once again, forming the green haired warrior again.

"Tempest, take down Illidan's mage with Glider Strike (2800 + 1000 3800/2800)!"

The warrior leapt into the air, taking aim this time at the white mage. The blaster on his arm began glowing with light blue energy at the tip. Soon, the blast was fired, striking the weaker white mage head no, destroying it easily.

Lightly smirking, Illidan said "Well done Jaden. You've done what very few have ever done. You just brought down my Silent Magician LV8. The last person to do that was Marie, but that was a good while back. Congratulations on doing this Jaden."

Running a finger under his nose, Jaden replied "Thanks, but it's come with a high cost. Unfortunately, when I use Instant Fusion, during my End Phase, Tempest goes back to my deck, so oh well."

The green haired warrior on the field began glowing and finally vanished, leaving Jaden alone on his field.

"Your go." (Chazz, Jaden 900; Marie, Illidan 7700)

Picking up his next card, Illidan said "You did well Jaden, but it's time I end this duel. I start by playing Pot of Greed, meaning two new cards are mine."

A large green pot with yellow eyes and an evil smile appeared on the field and let out a laugh as Illidan drew two cards. It then instantly shattered once Illidan had the cards.

"You've both done well against the two of us, but all good things must come to an end. I start by summoning Jowgen the Spiritualist (200/1300)."

A man in mostly maroon, with some yellow and red, tunic with blue pants appeared. He had a small white hat on his head and a staff in his left hand. His face looked oriental, and his whole attire matched.

"Why bother summoning that weakling?" Chazz roughly asked.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan replied "Very good question Chazz. It's really simple. You see, when Jowgen is on the field, I can activate his special effect. By discarding a card, he automatically destroys all special summoned monsters on the field."

Chazz only gasped at this, as he knew what that meant. Seeing he had figured it out, Illidan held a card out from his body, saying "I send my Magical Scientist to the Grave, meaning all special summoned monsters are gone now."

Placing his card in the Graveyard slot, the card was slowly sucked in, causing the mage's staff to start to glow. Twirling it in front of himself, the mage finally stopped twirling it and struck the ground with the bottom tip. A wave of white went flowing across the field, heading straight for Chazz's monsters. The wave struck the remaining odd creature, which was yellow. It instantly cried out in pain as it was easily smashed by the wave, with it sending out a small explosion as it vanished, leaving Chazz wide open.

"I next activate the spell card Magical Dimension, meaning I can sacrifice Jowgen in order to special summon Magician's Valkyrie (1600/1800)!"

A statue being held up by four chains attached to a metal frame like cube structure slowly rose up onto the field. The doors to the statue instantly opened up and sucked in the mage in maroon robes. The statue slightly glowed for a moment before opening it's doors up once more and shooting out a new young female mage with chestnut colored hair and green eyes, wearing a light blue and pink revealing outfit with a curved hook scepter in her hand appeared. She gave a small wink as she twirled around and swung her scepter downwards.

"Finish things up Magician's Valkyrie with Misfit Scepter Blast!"

Nodding with a smile on her face at Illidan, the mage leapt forward and pointed her staff at the two boys. With a light giggle, she shot two green spheres out of her staff. The twin blasts went hurtling towards their targets, which could do nothing. The blasts struck at the same time, causing both Jaden and Chazz to grasp their chests with pain.

Once the last of their life points drained, their Duel Disks powered down. The remaining monsters on Illidan and Marie's fields vanished, with the young mage giving Illidan a small wink and the orange dragon giving Marie a small nod. Their Duel Disks finally powered down, leaving the field quiet.

Illidan calmly walked over to Jaden, while Marie checked on Chazz. Seeing both were fine, they offered their hands. Jaden gladly took Illidan's and gave him a high five, while Chazz grudgingly shook Marie's hands.

Walking away, Chazz muttered "Stupid Slacker."

"Ah, come on Chazz, don't be like that man." Jaden called out to his friend, who ignored him and continued to walk out of the arena.

Sighing, Jaden turned to both Illidan and Marie, saying "Sorry about him."

Lightly chuckling, Illidan replied "You have nothing to be sorry about. By the way, good duel. You had some nice moves out there."

"Thanks, but you two were awesome. Me and Chazz just couldn't get in sync with one another, and that was our downfall. Oh well, it's all good." Jaden said with happiness beaming from him.

The crowd cheered on both sets of teams, seemingly happy with the results either way.

"No matter what, you did good Jaden." Illidan silently said low enough to only be heard by himself.

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As the weeks continued on, so did the bad nightmares/visions of Illidan's past. Almost once a week, he would have some kind of vision of the past, mostly of Zell's kidnapping of Marie.

Not one to worry Marie over things, he hid it from her, but knew she would grill him for it if she found out. He convinced himself that he would protect her from himself, but knew deep down he should really tell her what was going on, but still kept it from her.

Classes continued as normal, with Winter Break approaching on the horizon, giving the students something to look forward to. It was less than a month away, and with Thanksgiving coming up, the students looked even more forward to the upcoming break.

Still, a feeling of something was wrong hung around Illidan and Marie. Both weekly began checking the shrines, only finding them fine still. Illidan had managed to get permission to check on the Sacred Beast Cards, and found that the barrier surrounding them was indeed missing. He replaced the barrier with a stronger one, hoping that the new one would hold. Along with checking the shrines, Illidan included checking the barrier too.

During the week of Thanksgiving, a majority of the students left for home. Illidan and Marie decided to head to Egypt to visit Shadi and Ishizu with Mariah since Zane volunteered to keep an eye on the Slifer Dorm. While there, Illidan and Marie talked with Shadi and Ishizu of the strange happenings.

During the time, Illidan finally managed to get Shadi alone and the pair went for a walk. The two mostly discussed what was going on in the present, and occasionally told a joke of the past.

Turing to Shadi seriously, Illidan said "Shadi, I think something is wrong at the school."

Frowning, Shadi asked "Why do you say that?"

"Well, I've been having these visions of the past…" Illidan began.

"You've told Marie, I hope." Shadi said, interrupting Illidan.

Sighing, Illidan shook his head. "She doesn't need to worry about something that's unimportant."

"Illidan, you know she'll kill you if you keep this from her." Shadi said with a serious tone.

Once again sighing, Illidan nodded, saying "Yeah, I know, but she doesn't need to worry about something that is nothing. It's just visions of my past."

Thinking for a moment, Shadi asked "What part of your past?"

"When Zell took her captive and tried to get me to betray Yami." Illidan quickly replied.

"Hmm, odd." Shadi said with some thought.

Nodding, Illidan replied "She had a nightmare earlier this school year about Zell too, but it was odd."

"Are you sure it's not a vision?" Shadi quickly asked.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan nodded, saying "Yes, I'm pretty sure. She said he was alive in this time period, and that me and him were dueling. For some reason, she was away in a small distance watching the duel. I had Anubis on my field and whatever Zell was using struck him, causing me to lose the duel."

"Hmm, I can see why you say it is a nightmare. There are two reasons, one being Zell is dead. You, Yami, Set, and Marie all four confirmed that he died in the cave in. The other reason being Anubis is sealed away." Shadi said after analyzing what Illidan told him.

Nodding, Illidan responded "I know. No one could have survived that cave in, I'm positive. Even if he used a barrier to shield himself, that wouldn't hold long. He was as strong as I was back then, and I know for sure I couldn't hold a barrier up against that kind of pressure for very long, let alone long enough to dig myself out. Plus, he was exhausted from his fight, so I know for sure he couldn't have thrown a barrier up for very long. Then there is the fact that he'd run out of oxygen. I know Zell can't be alive, but yet memories of him are coming up in my mind."

Both sighed and looked out towards the desert. "I wish I knew my friend. But if you think something is happening, you should be extremely careful." Shadi finally said.

"Yeah, I know." Illidan replied, taking a glance up at the approaching dark sky. Looking up towards the part he was very familiar with, he lightly smiled.

Seeing this, Shadi smiled, saying "Thinking of your father again?"

"Yeah… He's been on my mind a lot too. I guess due that thinking of him always calms me down. He taught me so much before he died, but there was so much left." Illidan said as his eyes were still skyward.

Lightly smiling, he continued with "The one thing I always remember when I think of him is the constellation he showed me. It's the one known as the Phoenix. He told me that it was a mythical bird that never died."

Nodding, Shadi smiled, saying "Yes, that bird was said to never die. It would always rise up from the ashes, no matter what you did to it."

"Yep. Father told me that his love for my mother and me was much like that bird. That no matter what, his love would be eternal." Illidan said with a bit of tenderness in his voice.

Smiling, Shadi nodded, replying "Yes, that is the best way to put it. Love is eternal, and everlasting."

"Yeah, and I'm glad you finally found it, old friend." Illidan added with a bit of sarcasm on the end.

Both lightly chuckled and turned back towards the house to check on the girls and children.

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"I wish he wouldn't keep secrets from me." Marie said as she sipped her tea.

Ishizu looked over at Marie puzzled, as if asking for what she meant. "Remember, I have the power to see the past, present, and future." Marie stated.

Nodding with understanding, Ishizu lightly smiled, saying "I remember. Now, what do you mean about Illidan keeping secrets?"

Sighing, Marie replied "I know at night he wakes up from horrible dreams of some kind. What they're about, I don't know. He goes outside, calms down by looking at the stars for a while, then comes back to bed."

Frowning, Ishizu said "I don't see how that is keeping a secret from you. Maybe he's just having a bad dream and needs to calm down."

Shaking her head, Marie replied "No, I know Illidan. He had a dream a few months back, one of Zell…"

Seeing Ishizu was seemingly clueless, Marie lightly chuckled, saying "Zell was a friend of Illidan and his father in the past."

"Ah, I see." Ishizu responded as she took another sip of her tea.

Taking another sip herself, Marie then continued, saying "Anyways, he kidnapped me not long after Illidan began training me. Yami had banished him for killing his father, but he came back anyways to take his revenge on Yami. He tried to convince Illidan to join him, but Illidan of course, being the one to know what was right and what was wrong refused."

"Zell got mad and poisoned me, giving Illidan an alternative: bring Yami to him, or watch me die. Illidan chose to bring Yami to Zell, but not before finding a cure for the poison. While Yami and Set fought Zell, Illidan gave me the cure to the poison and got me out of the cave Zell held me in. In the end, the battle caused a cave in and Zell was trapped inside, buried alive."

Ending her story, Marie took another sip while Ishizu nodded. "I see. So, he's had nightmares about this memory?" she asked.

"Yes. He had one at least that he told me about. Ever since, he's not told me about it. I know he wakes up though from the dreams. A few times I felt him stir and get out of bed. A few other times, I felt him come back in and lay back down." Marie said as she stared into her tea.

Sighing, she said "After five millennia, I'd think he'd learn not to keep things from me. After all, I can see what has happened."

Ishizu lightly giggled at this, saying "That's a good deterrent from him ever cheating on you."

"Keh, as if he'd do that. He knows I'd kill him." Marie joked.

Turning serious, she added "But that goes against his honor code, so I know he'd never do that. Besides, he wouldn't do that to me. I trust him completely."

"Good to hear." Ishizu said with a smile.

Slowly trying to get up, Ishizu eased out of her seat, but nearly lost her balance. Lightly smiling, Marie said "I see this pregnancy is taking it's toll on you."

Nodding, Ishizu replied "Yeah, this kid is heavy. I forgot how odd it is to be pregnant again. You'd think after three I'd have figured it out."

"Yeah... I've been lucky in this lifetime so far to not be." Marie lightly joked.

Chuckling, Ishizu nodded, saying "Well, I don't mind. I love my children, and don't mind a bit of discomfort in having to carry one."

"Yeah… Oh yeah, do Marik and Odion still hang around close by?" Marie asked.

"Yes, of course they do. They take care of the kids quite often actually. Marik is a great uncle to them." Ishizu said with a smile.

Smiling even more, she added "It's hard to believe a little over ten years ago he was a laughing maniacal nut with a powerful darkness in his heart who wanted to take over the world. Now he's a laughing maniacal nut uncle who chases his nieces."

Laughing, Marie replied "Well, those jobs don't pay much. Besides, being a Harley dealer has to be a lot better."

"True." Ishizu added as she laughed herself.

Offering her hand, Marie asked "So, do you think our husbands will be back before dinner?"

Closing her eyes for a moment, Ishizu thought for a moment before smiling, saying "Yes, I have predicted they will return with big appetites that will put the world's food supply in danger."

Laughing loudly, Marie nodded, saying "Good prediction. We'd better prepare the world for the worst."

The laughing pair finally made it into the kitchen, finishing up the dinner for the returning pair.


	33. Chapter 33: The Truth Revealed

**Hello again people! Well, this week has been cool so far. I visited my grandfather Monday, and man, he was doing pretty good. They got him a new wheelchair that day and had him pushing himself! He ran it with his right hand and used his right leg to steer. He was getting pretty good before he laid down to rest. They also downsized his trachea once more, and the next step is to take it out. The breathing therapist said she'd rather have it out, but the doc told her to just to downsize it. One thing that does get to all of us is his short term memory seems really fuzzy sometimes. He called me David again, which is my uncle. Lol, I don't look like him really, so we're not sure why he called me my uncle again. He figured out who I was soon enough though, so I can't hold it against him. Lol, at least it wasn't as bad as when my sister left Monday night. She told him she loved him and he looked at her and said "I'm too old for you." LOL! My poor sister was distraught that grandpa didn't recognize her, but we are all thinking he was joking. He told my grandma the other night when she told him she loved him "How do they say it… Ditto." Heh, he loved the movie **_**Ghost**_**, plus he's bored too, so we're guessing maybe he's trying to spice things up. That or just pulling our legs, we hope, lol. Other than that, life is normal here.**

**Alright, onto where I am in my writing. I've gone back and fixed a few plot holes, but also began work on the last duel I had in mind. My mate, real life Marie, read the opening of it and thinks it'll be good, so we'll see. If only I could get her to read the rest of the story, lol. Anyways, if I keep working at it, I may finish by next week or so. I'll just have to see about it. Once I finish up, I will permanently be posting 3 chapters a week, plus I'll write up a few one-shots/song fics that I've had on my mind for a while. When I get that done, I'll begin my new story idea, the Inuyasha fic called **_**Another**_**. I've got a lot of my ideas for it wrote down in an outline and an idea file I created. I think it'll go good, but for now, I'm set on finishing this story.**

**Last time, Illidan and Marie finished their duel with Jaden and Chazz, who didn't fare too well against the dynamic couple. Not long after that, the pair went to Egypt where they met up with Shadi and Ishizu for Thanksgiving. Now that the vacation is over, what will happen? And where is our favorite mystery man!?**

**So cool, I got more reviews! Time to go through them.**

**ardee: Ouch, that sucks that you got attacked. You should hire the half demon protection agency to deal with people like that. After all, you point, we carve them up. I'm glad you really liked this chapter. Heh, you never know about Zell. After all, Illidan says he died long ago in a cave in. Could he be alive? Or alive within Jaden? Yes, yay, I finished the last chapters! Now I get to go back and write more!!! Well, it's longer than **_**TWS**_**, but shorter than **_**ToP**_** is about all I can say about it for now. I know there is no way I can beat the length of **_**ToP**_** with this story. Plus, in **_**ToP**_**, I somewhat cheated. I had really short chapters in the early stages, then longer ones at the end whereas **_**FG**_** has some long chapters and then some really long ones. I just set a standard in which I can't beat really, chapter wise, lol. I can beat it word wise, but that's all. In reality, **_**TWS**_** was only a 120k words shy of beating **_**ToP**_**, and it only had half the chapters. This story, I have a feeling, words wise, will beat **_**ToP**_** because so far, it has 118k, which is 230k less than my goal. But there is a lot of story left, and it may beat it in words. I could be wrong though, heh. Anyways, thank you for all of your comments and ideas, and about grandpa.**

**x-knight20: Thank you. Heh, ironic you ask about Jaden learning of Illidan and Marie's past. It may happen sooner than you think. LOL! (/Holds Marie back.\) RUN! She's got a frying pan! (/Let's go and watches a red eyed Marie chase after you.\)**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Yeah, I used Skyscraper like season 1. Really, originally, I used it like how it's really used, but eh, I changed my mind when I remembered the show did it differently. You'll see about how they were given to him soon enough, and there is more later on what happened when he got them.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Lol, yes, food is always an obsession. That sucks you skip lunch at school. Thanks about the duel.**

**Knives91: Wow, a new reviewer! Welcome aboard the chaos, lol. Thank you btw for adding me to your favorite stories. Yes, Marik hasn't changed too much since the last time the gang saw him. Lol, I think everyone wants their hair to do what his does. Thank you for the comments. Yes, chocolate ice cream is good, but I still prefer a different flavor. After all, chocolate is bad for half dog demons… Lol, hurray, I get to live longer!**

**Thanks for the reviews everyone! I really enjoyed them. Remember, to anyone who hasn't reviewed, feel free to. As you can see, I love to answer them, plus I can take criticism (refer to **_**ToP**_** for further proof, lol), good or bad. Thank you everyone though who has reviewed. I look so forward to them every time I post a chapter. I hope everyone likes this new chapter. It's a sad chapter to a degree. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 33**

The remainder of the Thanksgiving break was calm for the most part. Upon returning to Duel Academy Island, Illidan and Marie continued to teach through to the Winter Break.

Before sending the kids out on break, the finals were given. Both Illidan and Marie were thankful that all students had passed their finals in all of their classes.

As Winter Break began, the dorms emptied. A majority of the students in the dorms left, while a very few stayed. Mostly the students who didn't care to go home or the ones who really had no one to go home to stayed behind.

Both Illidan and Marie decided to stay for Winter Break, with some of their friends and family promising to come visit for the holidays. It was a little over a week before Christmas, and most were coming a few days before.

Seeing this was a time to speak with Jaden about Shadi's letter, Illidan started to leave to go to the dorm, but Marie grabbed hold of his arm.

"Be gentle in telling him." she remarked.

Lightly smiling, Illidan kissed her forehead and said "Of course. Do you want to come?"

Shaking her head, she replied "No, I'm going to continue to prepare for our guests."

"Alright. I love you." he said as he dipped in and lightly kissed Marie on the lips.

Pulling back, she smiled, saying "I love you too. See you soon."

Grabbing his coat, Illidan left the warm home to trek over to the dorm. Walking out closer to the dorm, he pulled his coat closer as the air was rather gusty and frigid. Small snow flakes could be seen in the wind, making him believe snow was coming.

Arriving at the dorm, Illidan walked up the steps on the outside to the second floor. Finding the room that was designated for Jaden, he lightly knocked.

After a moment, Jaden came to the door and smiled, kindly saying "Hello Professor Illidan."

"Hello Jaden. Mind if I come in?" Illidan asked.

Nodding, Jaden led the way into the room. Taking his coat and shoes off, he placed the two together next to the door.

"Well, I'm glad to see the rooms are well heated." Illidan admitted as he looked around.

Smiling, Jaden nodded, saying "The dorm may not be much, but it keeps the cold out pretty well."

"Good." Illidan shortly replied.

Taking a seat on a chair, Illidan noted that no one else was staying in the room currently. "Syrus head home for the holidays?"

Looking slightly sad, Jaden nodded, replying "Yeah, him and Zane headed out a few days ago."

"I see."

Smiling again though, Jaden said "But it's all good. I don't mind a little bit of alone time I guess. It gives me a chance to work on my deck."

"Yeah, I know what you mean Jaden." Illidan replied with a small smile. "By the way, where did you get those interesting space monster cards? Everyone told me you ran an Elemental Hero deck, but never mentioned the Neo-Spacians."

"Oh, I got them this past summer." Jaden nonchalantly commented. "I won them in a small tournament that Maximillion Pegasus threw. When I won, he awarded me the Neo-Spacians and Elemental Hero Neos. When I got the cards, I definitely felt connected to them, just like how me and Winged Kuriboh are."

Nodding in response, Illidan softly smiled. "Sounds pretty cool."

A small awkward silence immediately followed, leaving the two in thought. Thinking for a moment, Illidan sighed. "_How do I say this?_"

"Is something wrong professor?" Jaden asked, snapping Illidan out of his thoughts and breaking the silence.

Looking up at him, he shook his head, saying "No. I came to talk to you about something. I guess I'm just trying to think how to say it."

Slightly looking worried, Jaden asked shakily "Am I in trouble?"

"No, of course you're not." Illidan reassured.

Letting out a sigh of relief, Jaden replied "Good, because I'd hate to be."

Lightly chuckling, Illidan said "Don't worry, this isn't something bad I suppose."

Taking a moment to think again, Illidan finally asked "Jaden, do you mind me asking you something personal?"

"Like what?" Jaden replied with a curious glance.

"Why do you not go home during any of the breaks, other than summer?"

Frowning, Jaden lowered his head, saying slowly "It's… complicated."

"You don't have to explain. I was just curious."

Looking back up, Jaden asked "Why didn't you and Professor Marie leave during this break?"

Lightly smiling, Illidan replied "Our family and friends are coming to visit us here. We normally go to see them in Egypt…"

"EGYPT!?" Jaden asked with some shock.

Chuckling, Illidan nodded, saying "Yes, Egypt. I have… hmm, what kind of relationship would she be to me?"

Sitting with his index finger under his chin, Illidan pondered what relationship Ishizu and Marik actually were to him. "_Well, I never did think about this before. Hmm, I guess since they're my son's family, I'd be like a grandfather of some type._"

After a moment, he finally said "The relationship doesn't matter. Anyways, they're coming here to visit this year. Usually we go to visit, but we went during Thanksgiving instead this time, so it's their turn to visit."

"It must be cool to see Egypt." Jaden said, seemingly lost in thought.

Smiling, Illidan nodded, saying "Yeah, it is pretty nice there."

Sighing once more, Illidan decided it was time. "Jaden, there is something I found out recently that I wanted to talk to you about." 

"Oh?" Jaden asked, somewhat curious about it.

Nodding, Illidan responded with "It's about something you may or may not understand. Let me ask, have you heard of the Millennium Items?"

"Yeah, you spoke of them in class, but I knew about them before. They were seven mythical items that housed dark energy that was called Shadow Magic. A pharaoh had them created to save the world from itself." Jaden explained.

"Correct. There is more to the story though that I didn't tell in class." Illidan said as he wistfully smiled.

"There is?" Jaden asked, puzzled.

"Yes. But it's easier to show you. Do you trust me?" Illidan asked, trying not to worry Jaden too much.

Curious, Jaden nodded, saying "Yeah, I trust you. How are you going to show me?"

"Take hold of my hand and I'll show you." Illidan simply replied.

Taking hold, Illidan closed his eyes, calling up forth his Shadow Powers. Jaden immediately let go as his Shadow Charm he wore reacted. There was also a brilliant golden glow within Jaden's desk drawer, making Illidan believe Jaden has his other charms stashed there.

"What was that?! Why did I feel the use of Shadow Magic?!" Jaden asked, putting some distance between himself and Illidan.

Lightly smiling, Illidan stood up, causing Jaden to say "Stay back!"

Sighing, Illidan put his hands up in defense, saying "Jaden, I won't hurt you. I promise."

Jaden still stayed his distance, causing Illidan to ask "Have I ever given you a reason to not trust me?"

"That was before I knew you had Shadow Powers. I dealt with enough of that last year, and I don't want any part of it now!" Jaden replied roughly.

Sighing once more, Illidan said "I promise I won't hurt you."

Reluctantly, Jaden finally gave in and walked over to Illidan. "Alright, but if you try anything…"

Chuckling, Illidan replied "Don't worry, I would never harm you. Now, let me see your hand once more."

After a moment, Jaden finally reached out, grasping Illidan's hand. Being cautious this time, Illidan said "I'm going to show you a vision of the past. Please, don't be alarmed, ok?"

Jaden nodded, causing Illidan to nod back. Concentrating once more, Illidan summoned up his memories within a vision, showing Jaden a glimpse of the past.

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After two hours, the visions finally ended. Upon ending, Jaden sank to the floor. Sinking to the floor himself, Illidan only lightly chuckled, saying "That may have been a bit too much for your first time."

A moment or two later, Jaden asked "So, you and Marie were in the past? Are you five-thousand years old then?"

Shaking his head, Illidan responded "Not exactly. We both actually died five millennia ago, but were reincarnated recently. The reason we have our memories is due that our Millennium Items, which we picked up about ten to eleven years ago, revealed our memories of the past. We each now have our full memory back, so we know what happened back then due that it's our memories."

"I see. So, why show me all this?" Jaden asked.

Lightly smiling, Illidan replied "Well, you are one of the three people who have a Shadow Charm. By the way, the creation of them was my fault. About ten years ago, the mighty Pharaoh Yami, the one you saw in my memories, crossed over into the realm of the Pharaoh. Before he left, he decided to destroy the items. The problem was, he wasn't strong enough to absorb their powers, nor was the other seven of us."

"Seven?" Jaden asked, somewhat confused.

Chuckling, Illidan replied "The other seven of us were Yugi Moto, myself, Marie, Seto Kaiba, Bakura Ryou, Maximillion Pegasus, and Shadi. We were a group comprised of reincarnations and vessels. Me, Marie, Seto, and Pegasus were all reincarnations of past figures. The other two, Yugi and Bakura, were vessels to two spirits. The spirits were the Pharaoh, Yami, and our other friend Bakura, a spirit whom I locked in the Millennium Ring for turning traitor after Yami's death."

Seeing Jaden nod with understanding, Illidan continued with "Anyways, we absorbed a lot of the power, but were still not strong enough to take it all in. So, I created the Shadow Charms instead. Oh yeah, the reason you only got half was due to Marie dropping your charm after they were created."

"I figured someone dropped it." Jaden said with a chuckle.

Nodding, Illidan replied "Anyways, for the next four years, we hid the Shadow Charms across the world. Once we finished, we started school and finally came here to teach when we graduated."

Jaden's brow furrowed once again, as he said "Still, I don't understand why you're telling me. You could keep it secret."

"True, we could, but we learned something recently about you. In my memories of the past, you saw that I had five children, didn't you?" Illidan questioned.

Thinking for a moment, Jaden finally nodded, saying "Yeah, I did. So?"

"Two of the descendants from my son, Kai, live in Egypt still. My friend Shadi, who did live out the last five millennia, married the girl descendant named Ishizu. The other is currently unmarried."

With his brow still furrowed, Jaden asked again "I still don't understand."

"There is a reason. What I'm trying to tell you is that there are two descendants of my family line living here at this school. One being Mariah, whom you know. She is Shadi and Ishizu's daughter."

Jaden nodded, knowing full well who she was. Seeing this, Illidan lightly smiled, saying "And the other is you Jaden."

"HUH!?" Jaden completely blurted out in shock. Looking flustered, Jaden asked "How can that be?!"

Lightly chuckling, Illidan replied "Well, it's hard to explain. You see, Shadi, he tracked my family line for the last five millennia. He has contacted each and every one of my descendants, with the exception of you."

"So, he knew my parents?" Jaden asked with an unreadable face.

Nodding, Illidan replied softly "Yes, I suppose. He said he did, at the least. Anyways, Shadi said that you come from my son's, Fahd, side of the family. I guess that would mean we're very distant relatives."

"Oh…" Jaden quietly said.

Seeing the quiet reaction, Illidan asked "Is something wrong?"

Sighing, Jaden turned away, saying "It's just… I barely knew my parents."

"I see. I didn't know. Shadi never told me much about your family." Illidan responded gently.

Still with his back to Illidan, Jaden replied "It's alright. I've never been one to talk much about them."

Curious, Illidan bit his tongue to keep from asking questions he knew he shouldn't. Placing a kind hand on Jaden's shoulder, he smiled, saying "Well, you're among friends and family here."

"Yeah, I guess." Jaden mumbled.

"I didn't mean to upset you Jaden." Illidan said with true meaning in his voice.

Turning to face Illidan, Jaden smiled sadly, saying "Don't worry about it. Besides, you had no idea."

A moment of silence filled the room. Having a tough time to resist, Illidan finally asked "Do you want to talk about it?"

Sighing lightly, Jaden sat in silence for another minute. Finally, he slowly said "I guess. I really never knew my parents."

His eyes started becoming glassy as Jaden said "My dad died on the way to hospital when I was born. From what I understand, mom had gone into labor that morning, right after dad had gone to work. She was taken to the hospital immediately by an ambulance. The doctors then called my dad, telling him what was going on."

Tears began forming, as he sniffled, saying "Dad tried to make it before I was born, but a driver ran a red light, smashing into his car, killing him on impact. I never got to know him. All I have are stories, a few pictures, and nothing else really."

Slowly, the tears slipped off his cheeks, as Jaden sobbed, but he continued on. "Mom took it rather hard from what I was told. A year after I was born, mom died on my birthday. She was visiting my father's grave and left me with a friend. Apparently, the grief was too much for her to handle. She died at the grave, from some kind of aneurism. No one noticed she was dead till that night."

Pulling his knees up to this chest, Jaden placed his head against them and wrapped his arms around himself. "Both died on my birthday. In many ways, I feel like it's my fault."

Seeing the raw pain, Illidan pulled Jaden into his arms, embracing him. Reacting to this, Jaden placed his head on Illidan's shoulder, sobbing loudly now.

"It's my fault!" he cried out.

Cooing to him, Illidan patted Jaden's head, saying "Now, now, it's alright. It's not your fault."

Letting Jaden cry out some of his grief, Illidan slowly remembered how he had taken the death of his own father. "_I blamed myself because I believed I was careless in that battle. Squall told me it wasn't my fault, but I refused to believe him. It took me a long time to realize it wasn't. Jaden, I know how it feels. All you need for now is to let it all go._"

Jaden eventually regained some control. Pulling back, Jaden sheepishly smiled, saying "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do that."

"You have nothing to be ashamed of Jaden. I know how you feel." Illidan said, sadly smiling.

Lightly sighing, Illidan softly said "I lost my parents in this life early on too. I guess it's fate that I lost them."

Looking at Illidan oddly, Jaden asked "What do you mean?"

"Well, I lost my mother at childbirth in my previous life. My father died when I was eight in order to protect me from the pharaoh."

"Oh…" Jaden said, semi shocked, but still crying lightly.

Lightly smiling, Illidan replied "It's alright. I still have memories from both lifetimes of my parents that I hold dearly. I know I blamed myself in the past about my father's death, but I realized several years later it really wasn't my fault. He died protecting me, and didn't want me to think it was my fault. He wanted me to live a happy life, and I think I did."

"Even in this life, I've found myself happy even though I lost my parents when I was young. You just have to learn to let go is all." Illidan said with a small smile.

Nodding, Jaden took in what Illidan said as he dried his eyes with the sleeves of his coat. Putting his arm around Jaden, Illidan lightly ruffled his hair, saying "Trust me, with time things get easier. Don't blame yourself, you're not really at fault."

Jaden thought for a moment and finally slowly said "I guess…"

"No guess. It's the truth Jaden. And besides, you're not alone. You have your friends, and now you have a little bit of family here with you." Illidan said with a small smile.

Lightly smiling, Jaden nodded, softly saying "Thank you."

"No problem. Now, how about some lunch? Marie should be fixing something."

Jaden lightly cringed, saying "You sure she is fixing something?"

Chuckling at his reaction, Illidan replied "Yeah. Let's hope it's not burnt…"

"Last time I ate her food, it was beyond extra crispy." Jaden said honestly.

Laughing, Illidan patted him on the back, saying "You're most definitely one of my long lost descendants. Just don't mention it to her. If you do, well, I can't guarantee your safety."

Both laughed as they stood and grabbed their coats, heading out for to face Marie and her cooking.


	34. Chapter 34: Christmas Visits

**Hey there everyone! Well, sorry about the late post. I've had a busy day, plus I did a lot of proofreading on this chapter, which took a while. Life in general isn't that bad I suppose. I'm going to see grandpa tomorrow, so it should all be a good day.**

**Wow, my last chapter seemed to really get some positive feedback. I'm glad everyone really liked how I did it. The anime does a very poor job of explaining Jaden's past, so I slapped something together. I think it would explain why Jaden wouldn't really want to go home. Thank you all for sending all the feedback on that chapter.**

**Last time, Illidan explained things to Jaden, and Jaden in return explained his past. Now that Jaden knows who Illidan is, and who he is himself, what will happen?**

**This is going to be the best review session ever!**

**x-knight20: Heh, don't you know Marie (real life one) is a half cat demon? (/Watches her catch you with ease and drag you to the ground and beat you nearly to death with a frying pan.\) Ouch, that's got to leave a mark. Thanks for the comment.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Yeah, that's how he got the Neo-Spacians, but there is more to it, trust me. He'll explain later. Thanks about grandpa.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Thanks. Lol, yeah, Shippuden is pretty cool. I saw like the first 8 or so episodes, but stopped watching.**

**Knives91: Lol, yes, you gotta hate a burnt salad. Thanks, and yeah, I know, Jaden's story is a bit depressing. Thank you again for your comments. LOL! Uh, yeah, I kind of hid the popcorn…**

**Isis the Sphinx: LOL! I think he's turning a shade of blue there Isis. You may want to let go of Jaden before you kill him off. I'm glad you really liked this chapter. I think it was one of the saddest I've written, although I must say there are a few others that tie it. Thanks about grandpa.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: WOW! That is a long review! Well, let's get started, I suppose, hehe. Thanks, I'm glad you liked how I wrote up Jaden's parents and what happened to them and why he never goes home. Heh, I thought the origin of the Shadow Charms did tie things together pretty well too, so thank you. Very true, the origins of the Neo-Spacians is a very big mystery yet, with Jaden only mentioning where he got the cards, and not much else. Well, other than he is connected to them. Heh, like I've said repeatedly, I hadn't seen season 2 or knew of it's existence till after I had begun this story. True, Sartorious is the type to use Marie as ransom against Illidan, if he was in this story, which he might be… or not, lol. So, you have an idea of who one of the baddies are, eh? Feel free to PM me to find out if you're right. Yeah, the tag team duel was kind of one sided, I admit. It kind of ended up that way, but then again, you have a couple of pros going up against kids who can't get their teamwork act together. As for original cards, hmm, should I or not say? I guess I will. Yes, there will be more original cards. This fourth Sacred Beast though isn't really a fourth, but more on that later. Thank you for your review.**

**ardee: Ah, I see. Lol, yes, having him insult Marie's cooking and see what you get. Hmm, Zell a villain you say? Well, that's kind of hard when he's dead. Eh, he's not reincarnated into Jaden, just so you know that much. Thanks about Jaden being better. He does occasionally say dumb things in my story, but not completely dumb like the show has him do sometimes. Thanks for your comments.**

**Wow, that was a lot of reviews! Well, at least long ones, lol. Thank you all again for them. I enjoy reading them and trying to answer them. Btw, thank you Raymond Barrett for your PM. I enjoyed reading it, and glad you were inspired to write a fan fic of your own.**

**That's it for me today guys. Sorry this is late again, but like I said, I got busy, and when I'm busy, I can't do anything, lol. Enjoy the chapter!**

**Chapter 34**

A few days after Illidan and Jaden talked, on the eve of Christmas Eve, all of Illidan and Marie's family and friends began to arrive. Shadi, along with a very pregnant Ishizu, their three children, Odion, Marik, and a very shy girl whom hid behind Marik at all times arrived first that morning.

Mariah, the oldest of Shadi and Ishizu's children, dragged her mother and father off immediately to show the pair her room in the dorm. The couple kindly asked Marik and Odion to look after the two younger children, whom agreed to.

While they were gone, Marie noticed that the shy young girl was still hiding behind Marik, trying hard to not be noticed. Softly smiling at this, Marie walked over and said "Hello there. Who is this Marik?"

Lightly blushing, Marik stepped to the side and gently pulled the girl from behind him. The girl looked down immediately at the ground, trying hard not to look into Marie's face. Instead of saying anything or doing any kind of greeting, she held her right arm with her left hand in a shy manner.

Seeing the girl fully, Marie noted that she was a very nice looking woman. She had sandy blonde hair that reached her shoulders, with tan skin that shimmered in the light, and an oval face with perfectly oval eyes that were green. She wore a red sweater that wasn't too tight with a pair of comfortable looking jeans.

Still blushing, Marik gently said "This is my girlfriend, Gabriel Harding. Gabriel, I'd like to introduce you to…"

Stopping for a moment, he pondered on something and then asked "Uh, what relation are we?"

Marie anime sweat dropped at this and finally replied "I've always just figured sister-in-law or something to that effect."

"Ah yes, that's right. Anyways, Gabriel, this is Marie Stormrage, my sister-in-law."

Seeing that Gabriel was still acting rather shy, Marie offered her hand to her, saying "It's very nice to meet you Gabriel."

After a moment of deliberating, Gabriel let go of her left arm with her right hand and reached out and shook Marie's. In a very quiet mumble, she responded with "Hello."

"She's a bit shy, if you hadn't noticed." Marik quickly said while putting an arm around Gabriel's shoulder.

Smiling, Marie nodded, saying "It's alright. Feel free to make yourselves at home. Our home is your home."

"Thank you." Marik curtly replied. With that said, the pair went back to watching the two children.

Walking back into the kitchen to check on a few things she had cooking, a small smile escaped Marie's lips. "_I'm glad Marik found someone._"

About ten minutes later, Illidan with Jaden closely behind him returned from outside. Ever since talking with Jaden, the pair began to get closer and closer. The two almost seemed like brothers in a way, which made Jaden, as well as Marie, happy. To Jaden, Illidan treated him as an equal, not a kid. In return, Jaden treated Illidan with the same respect.

Seeing the pair enter, Marik walked over and gave Illidan a hug, saying "Good to see you again, Illidan."

Patting him on the back, Illidan replied "It's good to see you too Marik."

Separating, Marik noticed Jaden and curtly said "Hello. Who are you?"

Smiling, Jaden instantly replied "I'm Jaden Yuki."

"Nice to meet you Jaden. My name is Marik Ishtar."

Knowing Marik was curious to why Illidan had brought Jaden along, Illidan quickly said "Marik, you may or may not believe this, but this is one of your long lost relatives."

Cocking an eyebrow, Marik asked "What do you mean by that?"

"Jaden comes from my family line from when I lived in the past. He was my son's, Fahd, descendant from five millennia ago. You and Ishizu as you know are descendants from another of my sons, Kai. So, you're like long lost cousins in that manner." Illidan explained.

Both Jaden and Marik nodded, and Marik extended his hand and warmly said "Well, this is interesting. It's good to meet you Jaden. Welcome to the family."

"Thanks." Jaden replied hesitantly with a look of pondering on his face.

"Something wrong Jaden?" Illidan asked after noting Jaden's troubled look.

After a moment, Jaden finally responded with "Well, I was curious of something Marik. Can I ask you a question?"

"Of course, ask me anything." Marik kindly replied.

Taking a moment to construct his question, Jaden finally asked "Are you the same Marik Ishtar that faced off with Yugi Moto at the Battle City Tournament Finals?"

Bursting out into laughter, Marik asked "Is that all?"

"Sorry, I didn't mean to offend you…" Jaden began, but got cut off.

"No, you didn't. I'm just laughing because very few people remember that duel anymore. But to answer your question, yes, I am the same person." Marik responded with a smile.

Looking Marik over, Jaden finally said "You look different from what I remember in seeing the duel."

Lightly chuckling, Marik said in response "Well, I've changed since then. Illidan, have you explained everything dealing with Shadow Magic and all, right?"

Getting a nod from Illidan, Marik nodded in reply and said "Good. The reason I look different is king of simple. A powerful darkness was born in me as a child when I took what was called the Tomb Keeper's Initiation Ritual. In it, our family's most closely guarded secret was cut into my back. When I received the ritual, unlike others previously in my family, I grew bitter and a great darkness was born into me. My step brother, Odion over there, managed to keep it dormant throughout most of my young life until he was defeated in a duel that angered the Egyptian Gods. He was knocked out and my darkness got free and consumed me, fully taking control of my body. This was during the middle of the tournament, right before I dueled Mai Valentine. What you saw on T.V. or in films was the darkness dueling."

"Ah, that explains it." Jaden quickly said as he smacked a fist in his open hand.

Seeing someone standing behind Marik for the first time, Illidan lightly smiled and asked "Who is this hiding behind you?"

Blushing a bit, Marik reached behind himself and grabbed the young woman's hand and gently pulled her in front of himself. Kindly smiling, he said "This is my girlfriend, Gabriel Harding. Gabriel, I'd like you to meet Marie's husband, Illidan Stormrage. He is my brother-in-law."

"It's very nice to meet you Gabriel." Illidan kindly said as he extended his hand.

Gabriel didn't look up, but offered her hand, which Illidan kindly took and shook. Instead of letting go after shaking it, he brought it up and kissed it and kindly said "No need to be shy here. You're among friends."

Hearing that, Gabriel looked up and shyly smiled, and in a mere whisper said "Thank you."

"We're back!" Mariah yelled out, instantly interrupting the conversation.

Hearing this, everyone turned around to see them all walking in. Mariah stopped short of Jaden and gruffly asked "What are you doing here!?"

"That was rather rude Mariah!" Ishizu admonished

Turning to her mother, Mariah sorrowfully replied "I'm sorry momma."

"It's alright dear." Ishizu soothed as she walked in after taking her shoes and coat off.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan calmly said "Mariah, Jaden is here due that he's family."

"Huh?!" Mariah asked in a bit of shock.

"So, you told him then?" Shadi asked as he walked into the main room.

Smiling, Illidan nodded, saying "Of course. He's family. Mariah, Jaden is a distant cousin to you. Jaden, along with yourself, are a part of the family line that I started five millennia ago."

"Oh… Ok!" Mariah excitedly said after a moment.

Without a moment's hesitation, she leaped forward and embraced Jaden, saying "Welcome to the family!"

Shocked, Jaden hugged back, replying with "Thanks."

Ishizu was next to hug him, followed by a handshake from Shadi. Odion finally came over after dealing with the two younger children and introduced himself as well. The children were last to say hello to Jaden.

"This one is Riku, and the other the younger one is Sora." Ishizu said as she pointed at the two.

Riku had silver hair that reached his shoulders, and had strange aqua eyes. Meanwhile, Sora had spiky brown hair and bright blue eyes. The two were only a year apart, and were four and three age wise, with Riku being the older one.

Once the introductions were done, Ishizu sank down into the couch, letting out a loud sigh.

"Are you ok?" Shadi asked his wife, immediately moving to sit down beside of her.

Smiling, she replied tiredly "I'm just a little tired. All this traveling is a lot more tiring than I thought it would be."

"When is your baby due?" Jaden asked, not meaning to be nosy, but was more curious than anything.

"Hmm, sometime in a month or two I believe." Ishizu remarked. After a moment, she gave a sly smile and added "I'm a little over the seven month mark, meaning it's all downhill from here. Then again, it's also all pain from here on too."

"Any names picked out yet?" Illidan asked.

Thinking for a moment, Ishizu replied "A few, but nothing definite yet. We're not even sure what the baby is yet."

"Hopefully a little sister." Mariah chimed in from across the room.

Lightly chuckling at her daughter, Ishizu teasingly said "Perhaps. Or perhaps you'll have another brother."

"I'd rather have a sister." Mariah said with a bit of a pout in her voice.

The group all lightly chuckled at her. Noticing Marie wasn't in the room, Illidan decided he should check on his wife.

"Excuse me." he said as he bowed out and went into the kitchen.

Seeing Marie in there, he asked "How are things?"

Lightly smiling, she replied "Good. So far, the food is normal…"

"And not burnt?" Illidan teased.

Ignoring his comment, she added "Shadi and his family are the only ones who have arrived so far."

"That's alright. I have a feeling the others will be here sooner or later."

"Yeah." she said with a small smile.

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Around noon, another group of Illidan and Marie's friends arrived. A silver haired young man with a brown haired young woman, along with a young girl who had bright blue eyes and silver-brown hair appeared at the door.

Illidan welcomed them in. Seeing Jaden had no clue who they were, he softly smiled and said "Vash, Blue, and Kaia, I'd like to introduce you all to Jaden Yuki. We found out earlier this semester that he is a descendant of mine and Marie's from the past."

Extending his hand, Vash warmly said "Pleased to meet you chap."

Taking it, Jaden shook it, saying "Thanks. It's nice to meet you too."

Blue next stepped forward and gave him a kind hug, saying "A friend or family member of Illidan's is always a friend of ours."

Kaia was last to step forward and gave his leg a hug. Jaden only smiled and ruffled her hair lightly.

Picking Kaia up, Illidan smiled, saying "My, you're getting big, now aren't you? So, how old are you Kaia?"

She only lightly chuckled and sweetly replied "I'm six now silly."

"Wow, pretty soon you'll be older than me!" Illidan mockingly remarked.

"That's pretty old. I think I'll stay six for now."

Illidan, Vash, Blue, and Jaden all lightly chuckled at her comment. Setting her back down, Illidan said "Well, come on in. Only Shadi and his family are in for now."

Looking around, Blue asked "Where is Marie?"

Illidan pointed towards the kitchen, in which Blue nodded and walked off towards it.

Tugging on Vash's sleeve, Kaia asked "Daddy, can I go play with the other kids?"

"Go ahead sweetie." Vash said as he patted her on the head.

Smiling, Kaia ran off to play with Riku, Sora, and Mariah. Deciding to leave the group, Jaden followed after her.

"So, how are you Vash?" Illidan kindly asked.

Smiling, Vash replied "Pretty good. Mostly just trying to keep the bloody company going afloat in the market is all."

Nodding, Illidan said "Good to hear."

After a moment, Vash said "It's been rather quiet around home with Bakura gone. Then again, we have Kaia to keep us on our toes, although she badly misses her uncle."

"Yeah, Bakura was been her playmate a lot of the time, wasn't he?" Illidan quizzed.

Nodding, Vash replied "Yes, and she loves it when he comes home, which isn't very often now. I just wish he'd stay more often to help out with things."

"He has his reasons Vash. After the kind of life he's had to endure, I think he deserves a bit of breathing room."

Sighing, Vash smiled and sadly nodded. "Yeah, he has had it rough. Still, he does have some responsibilities he should come home for."

Patting Vash on the back, Illidan kindly said "I know, but he has some other ones that require him to be away too. Ever since he got his Shadow Powers, he seemed a little afraid to stay with you and you're family for too long. Don't forget, those same Shadow Powers are the ones that Ryou used to do so much damage with."

With a ragged sigh, Vash nodded in understanding. "True. I just wish Bakura could find happiness."

"I wish the same thing, but that's up to Bakura. Trust me, he'll find true happiness one day. Just be patient with him."

Smiling, Vash lightly chuckled, saying "You always know what to say to make me feel better."

"Comes with the territory I guess. Heh, I had a lot of wisdom given to me over two lifetimes. Not that I paid much heed to some of it." Illidan commented with a smirk.

Both lightly chuckled and joined Shadi and the worn out group of Marik, Gabriel, and Odion.

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After another hour, there was another knock at the door. Opening it, Illidan welcomed more of his friends into his home.

The first group consisted of a sandy haired young man who had brown eyes, a woman with blonde hair that reached her mid-back and had violet eyes, and two small children. The first was a young boy who had blonde hair that was down to his shoulders, and had violet eyes like his mother. The other child was a girl who had sandy blonde hair that was semi short, and had brown eyes like her father.

The next group that followed was a young man with a strange brown haircut and brown eyes, a sandy blonde haired young woman with hair that reached her butt and hazel eyes, and four children. The first child was a girl that had brown hair that was short and had a pair of curious brown eyes. The next was a young girl who had brown hair that came down to her shoulders and similar brown eyes. Next was a young boy who had long brown hair twisted up in a pony tail and had hazel eyes. Finally, the last young boy had sandy blonde hair that was down to his shoulders and had one brown eye and one hazel eye.

The last group consisted of a young man with long black hair that was held up in a pony tail and had green eyes with a die earring in his ear, with a young woman with sky blue eyes and brown hair that came to her shoulders, and finally a young girl with black hair that had pink and blonde highlights, and beautiful violet eyes.

Walking into the main living room, Illidan noticed Jaden close by and motioned for him to come over. Jaden instantly came running to Illidan's side.

Waving a hand towards Jaden, Illidan said "Guys, I'd like to introduce you to Jaden Yuki. He's a second year student here at the Slifer Dorm. We found out recently that he is also a descendant from my family line from the past."

Motioning towards the first group, Illidan pointed to the sand haired young man, saying "Jaden, this here is Joey Wheeler..."

"THE JOEY WHEELER!?" Jaden asked with enthusiasm.

Nodding, Joey smirked and responded back with a thick New York accent "The one and only kid!"

The smile on Jaden's face only widened as he said "Wow, it's a real honor to meet you!"

Chuckling at his reaction, Illidan said "Well, you've not met everyone yet. Next we have Mai Wheeler, Joey's wife."

Again, Jaden's eyes shined brightly, as he said "Wow, you know both Joey and Mai Wheeler! Awesome!"

"Well, you're a strange one, aren't you hun?" Mai said with a thick belle voice. She lightly smirked at Jaden, who only stared in awe.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan simply said "He gets a bit excited, as you can tell. And these two are their children. The boy here is Valen, and the girl is Jaina."

Smiling at the group, Jaden said "It's good to meet all of you."

Both the children smiled and nodded, each saying "Nice to meet you too."

Seeing Mai glancing around, as were the children, Illidan quickly commented "Marie is in the kitchen with the other women, and the kids are in the other room."

Nodding, Mai replied "Thank you. Valen, Jaina, do you want to go play with the other kids?"

"Sure mom." Valen replied immediately, and Jaina soon nodded in agreement.

"Be good." Mai lightly commanded as the two walked towards the other room. Mai herself then walked towards the kitchen, seemingly looking for company.

Seeing the next group was ready for introductions, Illidan smiled and said "Jaden, this is Tristan Taylor, and his wife Serenity Taylor. Serenity is Joey's sister by the way. These are their four children also."

Pointing to each in order, he said "This is Tina, the oldest. Next to her is her sister, Kathryn, who goes by Katie. This young man next to her is their brother, Michael. Lastly, this is their last brother, Tristan Jr."

Offering his hand, Tristan said "Nice to meet you Jaden."

Taking it, Jaden smiled and curtly replied "Thanks, and it's nice to meet you too."

"Kids, do you want to go play with the others?" Serenity sweetly asked.

All four nodded, and she said "Well, go on ahead."

The four all rushed off in a hurry at those words, seemingly excited to go play. Turning back to Jaden, Serenity smiled and gave him a light hug, saying "It's nice to meet you."

Lightly blushing from all the contact from all day, Jaden replied "Thanks. It's nice to meet you as well."

"I'm going to go sit with the other girls, alright honey." Serenity said towards Tristan.

Nodding, he said "It's cool. Me, Joey and the others will just hang out here."

Giving him a quick kiss on the lips, Serenity glided away with a smile. Tristan lightly blushed, causing Joey to roll his eyes and grumble out "You're blushing again."

Shaking his head, Joey pushed Tristan along, thus allowing the next group to step up to be introduced. Seeing them, Illidan smiled, saying "Allow me to introduce you to Duke Devlin. He is the creator of the game known as Dungeon Dice Monsters."

"You're the creator?!" Jaden asked excitedly.

"You got it. I created it back about ten or eleven years ago." Duke remarked.

"Wow!"

Chuckling at Jaden's reaction, Duke said "I'm going to see if I can catch up with Joey and Tristan."

"Ok Duke." Illidan said as he looked at the last two.

Pointing at the two, he warmly said "Jaden, this is Tea Moto, and her daughter Yoshi Moto."

Brow furrowing, Jaden asked "Are you related to Yugi Moto?"

Sadly smiling, Tea nodded. The light in her eyes seemed to be so weak, making Jaden sorry for asking. "I… I didn't mean to offend you." he began.

Shaking her head, Tea softly replied "It's alright. Me and Yugi are married. This is our daughter."

"Jaden, why don't you go on ahead and take Yoshi to see the other children?" Illidan asked nicely.

Seeing Illidan wished for him to leave, Jaden nodded and replied "Sure."

Reaching his hand out to Yoshi, Jaden was somewhat shocked when she pulled back out of his reach.

Noticing her daughter was slightly afraid of Jaden, Tea encouragingly said "Go on dear. It's alright."

Nodding, Yoshi shyly took Jaden's hand and walked off towards the room where the other children were.

"He's still not come home, has he?" Illidan gently asked as the pair watched them leave.

With a heavy sigh, Tea slowly said "No."

"Are you alright?" he asked, knowing the answer.

"Can we go outside?"

Softly smiling, he nodded, saying "Sure."


	35. Chapter 35: Surprise Visitors

**Hey there everyone. Well, this weekend wasn't too bad. I saw grandpa Saturday and spent the day with him. Heh, he was pretty tired all day, and the nurses mentioned that might have been due that his sugar (He has diabetes, but he's always controlled it through diet. No insulin for him, hehe) was a little low for once. They finally got it back up to normal, but he still slept. Before I left, I asked him about what he told my sister earlier in the week, about her being too young for him. Heh, he replied that he was just kidding with her, which I figured, lol. But it was good to see him. I saw him again tonight, and he was doing pretty good. Heh, he thought he could get out of bed and go to the bathroom, but I got him stopped and had the nurse take care of him. He should be moving to the skilled nursing home this week since they took his trachea out last week. Other than that, life was decent this weekend. Not much really happened. I had intentions of working on my story, but eh, that never happened, lol.**

**For my story update, not much to report on it currently. I'm trying to work on it, but eh, I keep getting sidetracked. I had to fight with my home computer most of the weekend, with it getting the better of me. I finally got it back to normal last night, but it had taken all weekend to get to that point… But I'm trying to get it finished up for sure. For now though, I'm going to post 3 chapters till I deem I should stop. I hope not to, but it may happen, just so you all know.**

**Also, I'm sorry I didn't post earlier, but I was having difficulties in posting. For some odd reason, I couldn't get my doc to upload, but now that I'm at home, it seems to be working alright.**

**Last time, Illidan and Marie's home was bombarded with old friends coming in for the holidays. Many familiar faces showed up, many with their children included. Tea was last to show up, but seemed offbeat (imagine that, lol). The question is, what now?**

**Alright, time to get down to business. Man, this story is getting closer and closer to 200 reviews each time. If I hit the mark, I'll most definitely throw in an extra chapter. At any rate, it's REVIEW TIME!**

**pink-kiss-candy: Thank you. Cool about seeing Shippuden. I liked it so far, but eh, I got to where I figured I'd wait a bit longer, although I know what happens in the near future with Naruto and Sasuke. Lol, Ryon lives! Barely, hehe. Maybe your favorite is… Gara!?**

**Knives91: Yep, hehe, the game is definitely afoot! Or is it getting it on? Too many phrases dealing with game! But thank you for the comments.**

**x-knight20: Thank you. I'd say you're lucky you had a potion. Nope, no Yugi, no Bakura, yet… Ok, I'll say hi to grandpa for you. (/Watches Marie slashed motorcycle to ribbons and you take a tumble over a cliff.\) Uh, I'd watch her. She's a bit dangerous…**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Yeah, the chapter was a bit slow, but eh, I'm reintroducing old faces back into the picture, which takes a chapter I suppose. Yes, my visit went well, and the busy part, heh, it never seems to end, lol.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Yes, there is some backstory that hasn't been explained yet. Actually, there was a part of this story that a certain half cat demon was to write up for me, but she never got to it… Oh well, I had to improvise and do it myself, lol. Thank you. Yes, poor Jaden is being bombarded with hugs and love from people he doesn't know, but at least he got to meet some rather famous faces. Thanks again.**

**Alright, that's it for this round. I'm glad everyone liked this chapter, for the most part. Heh, I kind of added it due that I realized I hadn't ever had a Christmas chapter, lol. Not really though, hehe. I did it mostly to bring back some old faces and show where they were 10 years later, plus it was good to have them interact with Jaden.**

**Thank you everyone for your reviews this last time around. Also, thank you to the Raymond, who added me to their favorites. Once again, thank you everyone for all the support and comments I get from you all. I helps me truly. I look forward to seeing the next batch of reviews. Till then, later everyone!**

**Chapter 35**

Quietly, Illidan and Tea slipped outside and walked away from the house where laughter could be heard. Together, the pair silently moved into the woods where Illidan found the spot where he usually meditated or worked out. The sky had darkened a bit since the early morning and threatened to possibly snow, but that didn't bother either person.

Finally stopping, Tea broke the silence with a dejected voice. "Things used to be so simple."

Stopping in his tracks, Illidan turned to face Tea and sadly nodded, saying "Yeah, they used to be."

"Illidan, why does he stay away?" she asked with a broken hearted look.

Sighing, Illidan ran a hand through his long hair and finally said "He's trying to make sure the Shadow Games never return."

Tears began to form, seemingly threatening to fall as she sniffled a bit to hold them back. With a touch of sadness and anger in her voice, she said "But he has a family to be with! He should be home with us, not out fighting. This is the reason we fought for all those years, so we could finally have a life together."

In a flash of inhuman speed, Illidan pulled Tea into a warm embrace. Surprised, but somewhat relieved, she put her head onto his shoulder and gripped his coat tightly with her two fists while sobbing out. Gently rubbing her back in a circular motion, he gently said "I know, but there is still evil out there that wishes to destroy the world. True, there is very little, but there is some, and that is what Yugi is trying to track down."

"It's not fair." she mumbled into his coat.

Sadly smiling, Illidan replied "It isn't, but unfortunately, that's the way things are for now."

Slowly, she released her grip on him and broke up the embrace to turn her back to Illidan. With her coat sleeve, she began wiping away the tears, but mumbled "Yoshi is getting bigger. She often asks about Yugi, wondering where he is."

Sadly sighing, Illidan put a kind hand on her shoulder, saying "I wish there was a way to bring him home, but as you've seen, he has things to do. I was very surprised that he came to our graduation this spring actually."

Pondering over what to say next, Illidan paused for a moment before saying "If I could take his place, I would. I bet more than anything he feels like how I did when I had to go my own way from Marie: sad, lonely, and miserable. I highly doubt that this journey is anything but pure misery for him."

Sniffling a bit, Tea responded sadly with "I know… I just wish there was another way. He's been forced away from home for so long. We fought all those years to finally start our life, and for a few years we had it."

Letting out a ragged sigh, Tea continued with "Maybe it was a foolish dream to hope peace would remain."

Walking to the front of Tea, Illidan grabbed hold of her shoulders and looked deep into her eyes. In a sure voice, he said "It's never foolish Tea to believe in a dream like that, so never think that it was. Those who struggle for a dream often achieve it. Don't give up on it yet, and especially don't give up on him. He'll come back, I promise."

Softly smiling, she hugged Illidan, saying "Thank you."

Returning the hug, he softly replied "No problem."

The pair finally turned back towards the dorm and began their trek back.

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Upon arriving back at the house, Tea went her own way to check on Yoshi. Meanwhile, Illidan came face to face with a scowling Marie.

"Something wrong?" he asked innocently, unsure why his wife was glaring at him.

Lightly growling at him, she asked "Where were you with Tea?"

Casually, Illidan replied "Talking to her. She's a bit upset that Yugi isn't around."

Still glaring at him, she replied "I hope that's all you were doing."

"Are you accusing me of …" Illidan said in total shock.

Giggling innocently, her demeanor instantly changed. She quickly finished his sentence, saying "Nothing. I know you wouldn't do that sort of thing Illidan. I figured I'd just see how you'd react."

"Sheesh…" Illidan muttered with a long sigh.

Looking towards the main room, he broke out of his small sigh and asked "How is everyone?"

Smiling, she replied "Perfectly fine. The children are still playing in the other room. Jaden and Odion are in there watching the kids. As for the adults, most of the women are in the kitchen talking. Well, all but Gabriel. The others are in the main room."

"Good to hear. Well, I suppose we should get in there."

Nodding, Marie offered her hand, which Illidan took without hesitation. With hands intertwined, the pair walked towards the main room, each smiling as they were surrounded by their friends and family.

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Just as nightfall reached the home of Illidan and Marie, there was a knock on the door. Unsure who it was, Illidan left the group to check on it.

Opening the door, he was shocked to find a familiar young man with hardened dark blue eyes with short brown hair. Beside him stood another young man, his younger brother, with raven black long hair and violet eyes. In behind him stood a young woman with shoulder length blonde hair that was put up in a pony tail. She had beautiful emerald eyes that seemed to gleam in the small amount of light coming into the room.

Coming from the kitchen, Jaden saw Illidan standing at the door. He heard him exclaim "Guys, wow, I didn't think you were coming this year!"

Finally breaking away from his shock, Illidan said "Well, come on in!"

Seeing Jaden standing in the room, Illidan smiled and led the new group into the house. Clearing his throat, he said "Jaden, I'd like to introduce to you to one of my good friends. This is …"

"SETO KAIBA!" Jaden interrupted with shock washing over his face.

Chuckling, Seto remarked "I see I'm still as popular as ever."

The other person beside of him with black hair groaned, saying "And I'm as unpopular as ever."

Looking at the one that spoke, Jaden thought for a moment, and finally said in a clueless voice "Alright, I give up, I have no idea who you are."

The woman behind him giggled, and even Seto chuckled. Seeing Jaden had no idea at all who the person was, Illidan remarked "Jaden, this is Mokuba Kaiba, Seto's brother."

Smacking his fist in his open palm, Jaden said "Oh yeah, now I remember. You're the guy who was always on the stage near Seto at the beginning of the duel or the end."

Sighing, Mokuba darkly grumbled "Everyone remembers me for that. Why don't they remember me for my dueling career!?"

"Probably because it was extremely short and unremarkable." Seto sharply remarked with a smirk.

Again, the girl giggled at the joke, making Mokuba only shoot her a glare. Chuckling himself, Illidan glanced at the woman, and after a moment said "I believe the girl behind Mokuba, as I remember, hmm, was it Ms Long?"

The girl smiled and nodded, saying "You have a good memory. By the way, the name is Margaret Long."

Extending his hand, Illidan kindly smiled and said "Nice to meet you again."

Margaret took it graciously and shook it. Turning to Seto, Illidan said "I'm surprised you guys are here. I thought you all weren't coming this year."

Clearing his throat, Seto replied "Well, at the last minute, we decided…"

"More like you decided to interrupt us all and demanded we're leaving." Mokuba retorted with venom in his voice and a death glare.

Chuckling, Seto asked sarcastically "You're not mad that I interrupted what you two were…"

"Seto, let me remind you, there are young ears in the room!" Illidan growled out.

Jaden, who was clueless, asked "Interrupted what?"

Seeing a glare coming from Illidan, Seto rephrased his response and said "I just bothered them and told them we were coming."

After a moment of thinking, he then asked "By the way, why is this student here Illidan?"

"Oh yeah, I never told you. Jaden here is a …" Illidan began.

Mokuba interrupted, growling out "Guys, not now!"

Noting that Margaret stood there curious of what was going on, Illidan sighed, saying "Oh yeah, never mind. I'll tell you later. Anyways, come on in and make yourselves comfortable."

The group nodded and walked on into the next room, where everyone gasped to see Seto. Joey made his usual tough talk, while the others shook their heads at his behavior.

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Around midnight, everyone began heading for their beds. All of the children had been bedded for quite a while, and most of the adults had stayed up but a few, like a tired Ishizu, Serenity, and surprisingly Marie.

Once everyone had headed towards their rooms, Illidan nodded towards Seto to come with him. The two stepped outside into the brisk night air, each noting that the snow was beginning to fall.

Slowly, the pair walked away from the Slifer Dorm and towards a small secluded area in the woods where Illidan did most of his meditation and exercising.

"So, he's your descendant?" Seto asked, breaking the silence.

Turning in surprise, Illidan asked "You knew?"

Chuckling, Seto replied "I figured it out on my own. One, I noticed the Shadow Pendant around his neck. Two, he's very much like you from what I've seen of his record and heard about him. Three, he looks similar to your son, Fahd, plus he shares some of your mannerisms. Shall I continue?"

Lightly chuckling, Illidan remarked "No, you hit the nail on the head. He is my descendant from Fahd's side."

"So, yet another long lost relative comes into the family." Seto sarcastically said.

Chuckling once more, Illidan nodded. His demeanor instantly changed, as his body tensed. "Someone is watching us."

Sensing what Illidan did, Seto braced himself. "Where are they?" he asked while glancing around.

Running off towards a cliff area, Illidan called out "This way!"

The pair quickly crossed the small amount of forest to where a tall set of cliffs stood. Once there, Illidan saw a figure clad in a black robes and a black hood with black gloves standing there with his back to him. Sensing a bit of Shadow Magic coming from the figure, Illidan began running faster, pushing his body to it's limits.

Immediately, the figure sensed Illidan rushing towards him and let out a low evil chuckle. He remained with his back to Illidan, seemingly not concerned with him at all.

Slowing his approach, Illidan called out "Who are you!?"

"Someone who has been dead to this world for many years." the figure said with a muffled voice.

"Are you the one who attacked the Anubis Dorm nearly ten years ago!?" Illidan demanded.

The figure chuckled darkly, saying "No."

"Then who are you!?"

No answer came back, angering Illidan, who yelled "Answer me!"

"I answer to no one, especially you, boy." the figure finally said.

Growling in irritation, Illidan took a fighting stance, saying "You best tell me who you are, or I'll have to force you to. I know you have Shadow Powers, which makes you a suspect to what has happened on this island over the last ten years."

"I answer to no one." the figure repeated.

"Have it your way." Illidan said as he prepared to attack.

Shifting his weight to one foot, Illidan dashed forward, preparing to deliver a quickly front kick. Before he could arrive at his target though, it vanished.

"What the heck!?"

Looking around, Illidan saw no signs of his target. Using his Shadow Powers, Illidan searched the grounds for any signs of the robed assailant. Not picking up any residual Shadow Powers, Illidan growled with frustration.

Cursing under his breath, he slowly walked back down the hill towards Seto, who was slowly walking up the hill. Both were sweeping the area with their Shadow Powers, but still were turning up no results.

"How did he do that?" Seto asked as the two walked up to one another.

Shaking his head, Illidan replied "I'm unsure."

After a moment of glancing around, Illidan frowned and said "Wait, I might have an idea. I saw a technique like that once."

"Where?"

Crossing his arms over his chest, Illidan slowly recalled when he had seen it. "Back when I traveled with the nomads, the group I was with ran into another rival group. One member of that group had a technique that could conceal their entire body and their powers."

"That is quite a dangerous technique."

Lightly chuckling, Illidan replied "Not really. It had major flaws. One, it wouldn't last long, and two being it consumed a lot of Shadow Magic. If you didn't have very strong Shadow Powers, you were defenseless soon enough."

Nodding, Seto said "I see. So, did that guy give you any information?"

"If he isn't lying, then I suppose so. He told me he wasn't the one who attacked the Anubis Dorm ten years ago. Whoever this person is, I don't trust them. And I'm getting the feeling that he has more Shadow Powers than he's letting on. To pull off the technique he did to escape, he has to have a tremendous amount of power in order to not reappear immediately."

Again nodding, Seto said "Very true. Perhaps we had better get back before the others worry about us."

Slowly, the pair began their trek back towards the Slifer Dorm. Along the way, the pair continued to scan the area, hoping to maybe catch a hint of where the robed assailant was.

"Tell me Illidan, have you checked the shrines?" Seto asked.

Still glancing around, Illidan replied "Yes, I've checked all five. Seemingly, all four are fine, but there was something strange with the Sacred Beast Shrine."

"Oh?" Seto asked, curious.

Nodding, Illidan replied "The barrier surrounding the cards was shattered. I'd be guessing that it was shattered the day the cards were taken earlier this year."

"Hmm, could a Shadow Charm have shattered your barrier?"

Shaking his head, Illidan responded with "No. I made that barrier rather strong, like the other shrines. No Shadow Charm alone could break the barrier. I doubt even all eight of them could equal the power needed."

"So, that leaves one question. Who broke the barrier?" Seto questioned.

"I'd be guessing our mystery guest may have done it. His power wasn't much, but I think that was a strong front. My guess is he's at least my equal in power."

Frowning, Seto replied "That means we have a powerful new enemy."

"Yeah…"

After a moment of silence, Illidan said "Together we can win this."

"Without a doubt." Seto simply replied.

Reaching the house, Illidan yawned and remarked "Well, I believe this exercise has made me rather sleepy. I'll see you in the morning."

"Good night Illidan."

The pair immediately went into the house and to their rooms, with Illidan going upstairs and Seto staying downstairs.

Slowly stripping out of his clothes, Illidan heard Marie wake up and look at him in the dim light, asking sleepily "Where have you been?"

"Out talking with Seto." he casually replied.

Yawning, she replied "Oh, ok. Goodnight."

Smiling softly as he watched her burrow deeper into the covers, Illidan finished readying himself for bed and slid in behind her. Wrapping his arms around her protectively, Illidan let out a content sigh and drifted off to sleep.

Off in the distance, a figure stood watching the house beside the Red Dorm, chuckling evilly. "Rest easy for now Illidan, for soon I shall bring down your world and bring forth a new one with your help."

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The rest of the week with everyone at the Stormrages continued on without anymore interruptions. Finally, the day after Christmas, everybody who had came left for their own homes. There were some tears shed, with many promising to get together again soon.

As the remaining weeks before Winter Break came to an end, Illidan remained vigilant in his search for the stranger. He told Marie of what happened that night with Seto, and warned her to be increasingly alert. The pair tried hard to flush out the stranger, but still, there were no signs of the person.

Unsure of where the stranger had vanished to, Illidan alerted the Chancellor about the danger, who said he would take measures to take care of the students. The two discussed several plans of action, and finally it was decided that a curfew would be enforced, and a few more patrols of the island would be added.

Otherwise, the campus was prepared for the return of all the students. The few students that remained helped get things set up, each seemingly slightly happier that their friends were returning soon.

During the last few weeks, Illidan began teaching Jaden about the Shadow Charms and about the past. Jaden was rather fascinated by Illidan's stories, as well as what he learned about the Shadow Charms. The pair grew closer and closer, till it seemed like the pair were actual brothers.

Illidan still trained and prepared himself, unsure of what the future held. He remembered Marie's dream from earlier in the year, about him losing while Anubis was out, and Zell laughing at him. He still couldn't make any sense of the dream, but Illidan wasn't about to take any chances. He continued his training, hoping that if the robed stranger showed up again, he would be ready to fight him.


	36. Chapter 36: First Casualties, Pt 1

**Why hello once again everyone! Not much to report on life this week. I met my family yesterday to celebrate my step brother's birthday. I got to meet his girlfriend, who seems exactly like him, if not maybe a little bit more wild, lol. She was nice though, and afterwards, me and Marie played a game of Monopoly with them (we were bored, lol). Everyone ended up quitting though, lol, which sucked, but oh well. I wasn't doing too great anyways. Heh, I had everything but 3 properties mortgaged and they had motels on them. Everyone had at least one or two monopolies. It kind of really sucked, but was fun, lol.**

**As for an update on my story, well, I'm nearing the end of writing the one duel I had. I hope it won't be much longer, but I'm unsure. Heh, Marie (real life one) seems to like it so far. Anyways, I hope it won't take much longer. Once I finish it, I'll be able to for sure keep posting 3 a week.**

**Last time, Seto and Mokuba, along with Mokuba's date (hmm, what could they have been doing when Seto interrupted them, hehe) showed up at Illidan and Marie's for Christmas. Illidan and Seto later that night went out and found a stranger, whom Illidan questioned. The stranger offered no answers that helped out too much, but who is he? Is he the one who has been watching over Illidan at the end of these chapters? Or is he new? Time will tell, hehe.**

**Alright, time to get to the reviews!**

**x-knight20: Lol, I wouldn't anger her anymore. (/Scratches her behind the ears while she purrs.\) Be a good kitty. Now, back to the review. Thanks for the comment. Yes, Yugi is out trying to get rid of all the Shadow Games. No idea about Movie Gallery Inc., lol. I don't get out much, so I have no idea, hehe. (/Watches Marie smack the plate away into the dumpster nearby.\) The poor kitty can't have spaghetti currently due that she's been feeling sick. Maybe next time you could offer it to me…**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Yeah, the plot if is forming, but slowly. Glad you can't wait, lol.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Thank you. Yeah, I know Gaara dies in the new series. I watched his battle, which was pretty cool when he fought the Akatsuki member. For some reason, his name escapes me, lol. Very disturbing Ryon…**

**ardee: Yes, interesting indeed, lol. Yugi's out, fighting evil, just like always. Eh, I did the pairings off of what I figured would happen. I mean, it was obvious Joey and Mai would probably hook up. Blue and Vash was a must, hehe. Shadi and Ishizu, well, that ship had sailed long ago in **_**ToP**_**. Marik and the new girl, eh, I just added her to give Marik someone. I had originally planned to delve deeper into explaining her, but changed my mind. Yugi and Tea, well, that just seemed somewhat natural. Tristan and Serenity, heh, I figured she'd probably pick him over Duke due to his actions in the virtual world, where he sacrificed himself to save her. Yeah, Tristan, eh, he's Tristan. Yet another numbskull, lol. Yes, Mokuba dueled for a while in the Pro League. Eh, deck wise, I don't know what he'd have had, nor care, lol. The plant deck he had he had stolen actually in Duelist Kingdom. Yes, a mystery man encountered Illidan. Was he the same one though? Lol, I just love asking questions that probably throw everyone off, hehe. But yes, Illidan assumes he's stronger than a person with all 8 Shadow Charms, thus equaling out to Illidan's own strength. Uh… I have no idea who Armateial is, lol. Do you mean Armityle? If you do, then eh, I don't know, lol. Yes, well, in **_**TWS**_**, you had to have the Seal of Orichalocos (can't remember if that's how it's spelled, lol) every duel, and Illidan of course pulled out the only thing that could match it, which was Anubis. Eh, the season 3 people are sadly not in this story. I wanted to after I saw the beginning of season 3 so badly, but I had already made my bed and have to lie in it. Heh, I have had wild thoughts of another story with Illidan and Marie going through season 3, but no, I said this was it and I am going to stick with it, lol.**

**Isis the Sphinx: True, a bit of unexplained back-story is left, but it's getting there. Heh, glad it explained enough for now, lol.**

**Well, that's all for this time around. Thank you everyone for your reviews. I enjoy them, and the questions keep getting more and more fun to answer. I hate to be mysterious always with my answers, but I hate to give away the plot also, lol. As for the comment about this being the stranger that met with Illidan earlier, it is the same person, just so I don't confuse everyone. I was just playing that it might be someone else, hehe.**

**But thank you all again for your reviews. I look forward to the next batch. Till then, later!**

**Chapter 36**

A few weeks after the second semester began, things seemed to remain normal. The Dorm Cup, or better known as the Dorm Wars, continued to rage on with the Obelisk Dorm taking the lead, the Ra Dorm moving to second, and the Slifer Dorm slipping into third. The race was still close, but the Slifer Dorm had noticeably fallen off the pace.

The top contenders who were bringing in points for the dorms consisted of Atticus and Alexis Rhodes, and Namine' Rox for the Obelisk Dorm; Syrus Truesdale, Tyranno Hasselberry, Chazz Princeton, and Axel Young for Ra Dorm; and Jaden Yuki, Ed Heiderich, and Roxas Himora for Slifer Dorm.

Many were surprised at a few of the front runners, but many more were shocked that some students that had been picked to lead the way weren't. One student in particular that was thought to be at the top of his game was Bastion, but he wasn't as successful as many thought he would be. To the surprise of everyone, three students, who were freshmen, were the ones helping lead the way for the most part. Plus, Atticus, after his overdue missing state, had returned with a vengeance in dueling.

Still, Illidan continued to rally the Red Dorm along, saying there was plenty of time to make up ground. He simply told his students that the competition wasn't over, and not to hang their heads in defeat, that they could still win. Many were inspired to try harder, but a few weren't as easily swayed.

As the dorm battles continued on, a familiar figure slowly slipped around, silently preparing for his attack.

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It was a cloudy night in the end of February when a black robed figure silently walked towards the underground bunker that was built for one reason: to house a powerful evil.

The steps of the robed figure were very light as he trudged ahead. He came to the underground bunker and spotted two guards. Neither guard had spotted him yet, so the stranger took full advantage.

Opening his palm, he formed two small spheres of black energy. Willing them away, the blasts went flying towards the two guards, who cried out in pain as they fell to the ground, seemingly dead.

Smirking when passing their fallen forms, the figure saw a large door that sealed up the bunker. With a wave of his hand, the door opened effortlessly. Walking in, he smirked at the prize awaiting him.

There was a large pillar with large stone locks surrounding it. In the center was a large flat surface with seven key holes. A barrier surrounded the surface, seemingly protecting it.

With a wave of his right hand, the surface glowed, and the seven key holes unlocked. Slowly, the flat surface opened, displaying a square box. The box opened immediately and three cards began floating into the air.

The figure twitched his fingers back towards his body. The cards instantly began to slowly fly towards him. Upon meeting the barrier, they stopped and fell to the flat surface and became lifeless once more.

Smirking at the result, the stranger softly said aloud "I see you doubled your barrier this time. Clever Illidan, but not quite clever enough."

Turning his palm to the barrier, the stranger formed a dark orb. It was small, but seemingly powerful. With ease, he launched the blast at the barrier, striking it and causing it to shatter instantly.

Walking over, the stranger picked up the cards and smirked. "At long last we are reunited my friends."

The cards glowed in response, making the robed figure smirk once more, and let out a soft cackle. Pulling a deck out of his robe, he placed the three cards within it and shuffled and placed it back in his cloak.

Turning away, the figure said "The destruction of this world is at hand. Soon, I will begin it, and end this chaos."

With silent steps, the figure left the bunker, leaving no signs of his presence.

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The next morning, Illidan, along with Chancellor Shepherd and Marie, examined the empty bunker. Looking at the place where the barrier once stood, Illidan saw an empty square box and let out a ragged sigh.

Glancing at the Chancellor, he remorsefully said "He has the Sacred Beast Cards."

Nodding, Chancellor Shepherd worriedly said "Those cards are too dangerous in anyone's hands. The thing I don't understand is how he could have gotten them. Your barrier, plus the guards, should have stopped him."

Shaking his head, Illidan replied "No, this person is far more skilled. He sent the two guards to the Shadow Realm without much effort, and then easily shattered my barrier. The person we're dealing with is quite cunning, and quite powerful. He must be able to dampen his Shadow Powers also. I never felt anything last night that would indicate a build up of Shadow Powers."

"Same here." Marie added solemnly.

Frowning, Illidan commented "We should have felt something. That barrier was pretty strong. I poured all of my strength into it. I could have shattered it, but only if I used a dangerous technique. Whoever shattered this barrier has a tremendous amount of power, and just put it on display."

Again nodding, the Chancellor asked "Is there anyway to stop this person?"

"If I can find him, I will. I understand that he also attacked a few students and other guards during the night, correct?" Illidan asked.

"Yes. He attacked five other guards and four students. All nine are like these two guards; still alive, but unconscious. They just seem to be motionless, like something is missing." replied the Chancellor.

Thinking for a moment, Illidan said "Eleven people so far. What is this guy after? He has the Sacred Beasts, so what else does he want?"

"Did the students have Duel Disks on?" Marie broke into the conversation.

Nodding with a slight look of surprise, the Chancellor replied "Why, yes, but do you think he played Shadow Games with the students?"

"I'd be willing to bet he did and they lost. We should check the records to make sure. Maybe we'll turn something up." Marie said with a bit of hope in her voice.

Turning to the entrance of the cave, Illidan said "In the meantime, we should prepare for the worst."

"Yes, we should." the Chancellor echoed.

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Two days after the incident in the bunker, Syrus and Hasselberry were walking to the Ra Dorm after working out that night at the gym. After their workout, they always dueled, allowing them to reap the rewards of growing stronger in their minds and bodies. The pair was traveling the well worn dirt road between the dorm and the main workout area.

The night was a rather windy one, not to mention a storm was moving in. Lightning flashed in the background as the pair slowly walked towards the dorm, seemingly somewhat relaxed.

"Professor Illidan was right! To train the mind you need to train the body. I think this workout regiment we've been on has truly helped both of us!" Syrus happy said.

"Sure has Private Truesdale. Now we're twice the duelists we once were, plus we know each other's dueling strategies better so if we have a tag team duel, we'll know what to do!" Hasselberry bantered back.

Lightly smirking, Syrus replied "Your strategy isn't that hard to figure out."

"HEY!" yelled Hasselberry playfully.

The pair simply laughed at one another aloud. As they approached the Ra Dorm, they heard a scream and instantly broke into a run in the direction of the scream.

Arriving, they found a girl with blue short hair and light blue eyes lying on the ground. She wore a yellow uniform, signifying she was a part of the same dorm as their selves.

"Hinata!" Syrus called out in shock when he recognized her. He instantly rushed to her side to check on her.

Seeing who it was also, Hasselberry rushed to her other side. She was lying on her side, and the pair rolled her onto her back. Looking at her, they soon realized she was like all the other students who had been attacked over the last few days.

Glancing around, the pair soon found the culprit. He was standing in front of them with a Duel Disk visible, seemingly glaring at them.

"You, you're the one who did this to her and the others, aren't you!?" demanded Hasselberry as he stood.

Chuckling darkly, the figure said "Fools, you all will fall at my hands."

Growling, Syrus stood up, saying "We'll see about that! You'll pay for hurting Hinata and the others!"

Looking the pair over, the figure chuckled darkly once more, saying "Come, I will take both of you on."

"You really are foolish. Whoever you are, this ends here!" Hasselberry growled as he shuffled his deck and slid it into his Duel Disk deck slot.

Shuffling his deck as well, Syrus added "If we win, give back the souls you stole!"

The figure only chuckled once more, saying "I will, if you win. But if you lose, your souls are mine."

Pulling his own deck out, the stranger shuffled and stuck his deck back in it's slot. The Duel Disk instantly powered up, as did Syrus and Hasselberry's.

"I hope you two entertain me more than that girl did." the figure said with a small chuckle.

Growling at him, Hasselberry yelled "We'll make you pay for what you've done to everyone!"

"Yeah, and you'll be sorry you ever messed with Duel Academy." Syrus added with anger flashing in his eyes.

All three drew their first five cards as thunder boomed in the background. Together, Syrus and Hasselberry declared "Game on!"

"I think this shall be an enjoyable Shadow Game!" the figure called out as the area surrounding the three blackened some. A visible black translucent sphere formed around the group, seemingly protecting them from everything outside.

Looking around, Syrus grit his teeth while Hasselberry stayed focused on the figure.

"You two may go first." the robed figure said.

Nodding to Syrus, Hasselberry said "Start us off soldier. Show him what he's messing with!"

"Right!" Syrus replied with confidence.

Drawing his first card, Syrus turned it towards the stranger, saying "I start off by playing the spell card Graceful Charity! This allows me to draw three new cards, but I have to send two from my hand to the Graveyard when I'm done."

Picking up three more cards, Syrus examined them. After a moment, he finally picked two cards from his hand and placed them in his Graveyard slot, saying "I send Truckroid and Drillroid to the Graveyard. Next, I summon Expressroid (400/1600)!"

A white subway train appeared on the field with a bit of a stern look on it's face. It had a few cars behind it, but they appeared to be empty.

"When I summon Expressroid to the field, he picks up a few passengers from the Graveyard, so I return Truckroid and Drillroid to my hand."

Slowly, the two cards that had just been discarded to the Graveyard slot slowly began coming out into Syrus's waiting hands.

Smirking, Syrus called out "Next, I play the spell Vehicroid Connection Zone! This works like Polymerization to make a Fusion monster! I now fuse Expressroid, Truckroid (1000/2000), Drillroid (1600/1600), and Stealthroid (1200/0) together to form Super Vehicroid Stealth Union (3600/3600)!"

A truck like creature with a smiling face, a stealth bomber plane with no real face, and finally a drill like creature with a drill for a nose and two drill hands with it's bottom part of it's body looking like a tank each appeared. The subway train joined them as they flew up into the air. Each began to break apart into different pieces. A pair of legs formed from the drill creature, a midsection and shoulders were formed with the jet, while the subway made shoulder pads. The truck tucked into the midsection as arms were formed from the remaining pieces of the creatures. Finally, the pieces linked together. A large head shot out of the top to take it's place. The new creature struck a battle pose, showing it's eagerness to fight.

"Finally, I'll place a card face down. Hasselberry, show him what you got!" (Syrus 4000, Hasselberry 4000; Stranger 4000)

Picking up his next card, Hasselberry said "Nice job soldier. Now it's my turn. I special summon Gilasaurus (1400/400) to the field."

A brown raptor dinosaur on two powerful back legs, armed with strong claws and sharp teeth appeared on the field with a small hiss.

"Next, I play the spell Big Evolution Pill! With this, I can sacrifice a Dinosaur Type monster. When I do, for three whole turns, I can summon Dinosaur Type monsters from my hand without a tribute. Gilasaurus, you're dismissed. Now then, Ultimate Tyranno (3000/2200), front and center!"

The smaller brown raptor vanished from the field only to be replaced by a larger black tyrannosaurus dinosaur. It had many rough spikes on it's body, and was armed with sharp claws and teeth.

"Finally, to reinforce my platoon, I place two cards face down. Looks like you're going to have to face some tough opposition on your turn!" (Syrus 4000, Hasselberry 4000; Stranger 4000)

The figure only sneered at the pair, saying "You two may think that your clever tactics have won the game, but you are mistaken. This is no game. This is your end."

Both Syrus and Hasselberry remained strong, but the stranger drew his card, saying "I play Pot of Greed. I now draw two more cards."

Picking up two more cards, the stranger chuckled, saying "I shall end you both in this duel. I start by playing three continuous spell cards."

Sweat formed on Syrus's brow, as Hasselberry growled, saying "Who cares what you play!?"

"This is bad." Syrus silently commented with a deep look of worry.

Chuckling darkly as he jammed three cards into his spell/trap card zones, the stranger said "Your impending end begins with this, the spell known as Spell Absorption. For every spell card played, I gain 500 more life points."

Pointing at the next card forming, he said "Next up is the card known as Level Limit – Area B. With this out, all level four and higher monsters on the field are forced into defense mode!"

Syrus and Hasselberry both gasped in horror as each of their monsters were forced into kneeling positions.

"Come on now, that's just not fair!" Hasselberry argued.

Chuckling, the stranger said "Oh, but it is. The final spell card I play is this, my Swords of Concealing Light. With this, I can flip all of your monsters to face down defense mode!"

Black swords suddenly formed up in the sky. Each sword was made of some kind of black energy. They soon began raining down onto the dinosaur and machine monsters, causing both monsters to vanish instantly, only to be replaced by horizontal hologram card images immediately. Syrus and Hasselberry both growled in frustration, but each held their cool.

"Thanks to me playing two more spell cards, I gain 1000 life points thanks to my Spell Absorption."

Laughing evilly, the stranger yelled "Now, prepare to be plunged into darkness! I sacrifice all three of my spell cards …"

The sky seemed to darken slightly at this declaration, and the lightning in the background began streaking across the sky more frequently. Hasselberry glanced around, somewhat unsure of what was going on, while Syrus shifted uneasily.

"… to summon the first of my three Sacred Beasts! Rise up Hamon, Lord of Striking Thunder (4000/4000)!"

All three spell cards were struck by lightning at this declaration, causing them to vanish and send a huge burst of energy into the sky. The sky then lit up greatly as a large lightning bolt struck the field near the stranger. From the lightning strike came a large dull golden colored creature. It had massive thin skinned wings, thin arms with large clawed tips on it's hands, red glowing eyes, two large horns and a chin like horn on it's head, a long powerful tail, and sharp claws and fangs. The creature roared loudly, sending out several shockwaves.

"Sam Hill! What is that thing!?" Hasselberry yelled over the roar.

With great fear in his eyes, Syrus replied "That thing is one of the Sacred Beast Cards that Jaden told you about. They're extremely powerful, and dangerous!"

Softly growling and a touch frightened, Hasselberry gathered his courage, saying "You may have summoned that thing, but I get to activate a trap due to it! I activate Hunting Instinct. With this, whenever you special summon a monster, I get to special summon a Dino Type monster from my hand, so I pick my Black Stego (1200/2000) in defense!"

A stegosaurus dinosaur appeared onto the field with dark green skin and dark red scales on it's back. The creature took a defensive stance, hoping to ward off any attacks.

Evil laughter filled the air, as the stranger commented "Your move is pointless. I'm far from done this turn. I play the spell Phantasmal Martyrs! While I have Hamon on my field, I can send my hand to my Graveyard and special summon three Phantasmal Martyr Tokens (0/0) to my field!"

Three blue and purple creatures with wing like cloaks made of thin skin appeared. The three softly glowed blue, giving off a creepy feeling.

"By the way, one of the cards I just sent to my Graveyard now activates. You see, I sent my Broww, Huntsman of Dark World (1400/800) to my Graveyard. In doing so, his effect kicks in, allowing me to draw an additional card from my deck."

Adding another card from his deck to his hand, the stranger chuckled darkly, saying "Ah, just the card I needed. I play the spell Card of Sanctity! With this, we each draw till we hold six cards in our hands."

Together, the three picked up cards till they each held six cards. Laughter instantly rang out from the stranger as he called out "You fools will now see the true power of my deck! I sacrifice my three Phantasm Martyr Tokens to special summon Raviel, Lord of Phantasm (4000/4000)!"

The three smaller token creatures vanished in a flash of light as an ominous purple cloud formed on the field. Through the cloud came two massive blue wings with thin see-through skin, large blue horns at the top, and powerful sharp talon like claws attached to purple hands came out of the darkness. Slowly, the cloud diminished, and the rest of the creature came into view. It's body consisted of purple and light blue. It had massive chiseled out abs, muscular arms and legs, and finally a strong head with a strange crown like set of horns. The creature let out a massive roar, making the very ground shake.


	37. Chapter 37: First Casualties, Pt 2

**Hello once again everyone! Well, this week has been a mostly quiet one, other than I've been doing some testing for work. It's been cool and all, but it seems more tedious than programming, but oh well. Ah yes, good news on the grandpa front. He was moved to the skilled nursing home near where him and my grandmother live. It's like only 5 minutes away from their home, which is awesome for my grandmother. She has no more long trips for a while at the least. It's still nearly an hour from me, but that's cool. Better than an hour and a half or more, lol. But he's doing well, and can stay for 20 days thanks to Medicare. There is a possibility that after the 20 days are up he can go back to the rehab facility for more therapy, but only if he shows improvement. Hopefully he will show some. Still, eh, I'm half and half on him going back. I want to see him get better and become more independent like he once was, but at the same time, I know he wants to go home too. I'm kind of tore on the idea both ways. (/sighs\) It's such a tough call too. I guess in 20 days time, we'll find out what the deal is.**

**Hmm, I also got some writing done in the last day or so. I'm nearly done with the last duel I had to write. I'm like a turn or two from finishing. Once I finish it up, that should be it for this story, and it can stay permanently on a 3 chapter posting a week. I've also gotten a few more ideas for characters for my next story, **_**Another**_**, the Inuyasha fic. Finally, I've decided to do another one-shot or two also on some other songs I found that I had strong visions on for Inuyasha, and possibly a Fullmetal Alchemist one.**

**Last time, the Sacred Beast Cards were stolen by the mysterious stranger, who has begun terrorizing the students with Shadow Games. Syrus and Hasselberry appear to be the next victims with them now facing two Sacred Beasts. Can the pair survive this duel, or will the end result be the same as the others?**

**Happy day, it's time once more for reviews!**

**Isis the Sphinx: LOL! Hmm, you think Syrus and Hasselberry are toast, eh? Well, we'll see. They could pull an upset win! Or probably not, lol. Thanks for the comments.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Yep, two Sacred Beasts already. Heh, I'm not sure Syrus and Hasselberry can get out of it, lol. They could pull it off though. Never know… Thanks for the comments.**

**Knives91: Lol, yes, big trouble. I don't think rocket launchers will work though, hehe. Thanks about the chapter. Eh, you never know about Roxas and Namine's names. Thanks again.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Yep, that's the name. Heh, Gaara nearly disarmed him completely, lol. Ah, you have a crush on him? (/Whispers to Ryon: "Go set them up."\)**

**ardee: Yes, he stole the Sacred Beasts. Lol, dumbest students, eh, I don't know about that one. But yes, he's a true badass villain. As for defeating the most powerful ones, I think he's just out to prove a point… or to get certain someone's attention maybe. True, it would be cool to see him duel Zane. Will it happen or not, who knows (other than me, hehe)? Eh, his identity is a mystery. It'll be revealed soon… maybe this chapter, or not, lol. Yeah, it is a real shame to not have had a chance to add in the season 3 characters. I really have had a thought about writing another sequel, but I'd rather not. Where I leave this story at the end, it's pretty much over. Besides, Illidan and Marie can't save the world forever, hehe. Ah, I thought you might have been talking about Armityle. Eh, the card isn't that bad, if it has the right combo. As for using it, I don't know. Maybe, maybe not. Thanks about grandpa.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: LOL! Yes, that describes things. The fact that this guy is using the Sacred Beasts much better than Kagemaru is one thing I wanted to do. After all, Kagemaru didn't use them very well in his duel with Jaden. He kind of just winged it. Eh, Sy and the soldier may go down, but it's early in the duel yet. They could win… maybe… or not, lol. Wow! You actually figured out where I got the robed figure motif idea! I'm surprised no one else has yet to mention that. Yes, the stranger is dressed like one of Organization 13 members. Hmm, could that mean something about Roxas? That's yet to be determined. Lol, it's a good ramble though. Thanks about the work. Yeah, the holiday chapters were slow, but kind of semi boring, other than showing the figure finally confronted Illidan, and that he's a bit skilled. Yes, this duel is a serious bang. Thanks again for the comments.**

**x-knight20: Thank you. Yep, two Legendary Demons, aka Sacred Beasts, in a single turn. I know, they are called Legendary Demons in Japan, but I stuck with the American names. Or maybe I'm calling them Sacred Beasts due that no one knows they're true names is Legendary Demons? (/Mischievously smirks.\) Yes, I actually went to the theater to see the Transformers Movie. It was great, although my mate didn't like it. (/Knows she secretly didn't want to go.\) I liked it really well. Heh, so many hilarious moments, plus so many good battle scenes. I got the game to it also for PS2. It rocked!**

**Thank you everyone for your continuing support and reviews. I'm glad everyone has taken a liking to this duel, even though it's two minor characters battling on with someone seemingly invincible, lol. Ah yes, thank you Raymond Barrett for your PM.**

**Well, that's all I have for this time around everyone. I hope you enjoy this chapter, and just to give you all a hint, things shall be revealed soon. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 37**

"Not two of them…" Syrus murmured in dismay.

Seeing Syrus faltering, Hasselberry called out "Buck up soldier! Don't let those things scare you!"

"They will do more than scare you in moments." the stranger interjected.

Pulling a card from his hand, he added "I play the spell Heavy Storm, meaning whatever plans you two had on stopping my Sacred Beasts are gone!"

A powerful set of winds blew up, forcing both face down cards to fly into the air and shatter. One was revealed to be Magic Cylinder, and the other was Amber Pitfall.

"Darn it, our monsters are wide open!" Hasselberry blurted out.

Chuckling evilly, the stranger said "It's worse than that. You're about to become very defenseless. It is time I activated these two equip spell cards! I play two copies of Big Bang Shot, which each raise a selected monster's attack points by 400. So, I equip a copy to each of my Sacred Beasts (4000 + 400 4400/4000) (x 2)!"

Both creatures roared loudly once more as their strength increased. Their auras each flared up and began glowing darker and darker as they glared down at Syrus and Hasselberry.

"Ah yes, I forgot the most important part about these spell cards. When equipped, they give my monsters a new ability. When they battle a monster in defense, the difference in my monster's attack points and your monster's defense points are dealt directly to your life points!"

"Trample…" Syrus murmured with a bit of shock.

Laughing manically, the stranger confidently responded with "Exactly! Hamon, attack Mr. Truesdale's monster with Raining Lightning!"

Roaring loudly, the dull gold creature began glowing with white electrical energy. Turning it's head towards the face down card image, the creature opened it's jaws, revealing lightning crackling full of energy within them. In a single motion, a streak of lightning went flying out of it's jaws and began racing across the field at high speed. The blast struck the face down card image, forcing it to reveal the combination robot once more. The robot let out a loud mechanical scream before it exploded into millions of pieces. The remainder of the blast continued on after boring through the robot and struck Syrus, who instantly cried out in pain as he sank to one knee, panting hard.

While he sat on his knee, small wisps of white energy seemed to slowly rise out of his back, making him shudder. He began panting harder than before, as if he had begun feeling even weaker than before.

"What are you doing to him!?" Hasselberry demanded in a gruff voice.

Chuckling darkly, the stranger replied "Taking what is mine. As we lose life points, we lose portions of our souls and the Sacred Beasts absorb it. Of course, if you win, your soul will be made whole once more, but only when you win."

Sneering, the stranger added "Ah yes, that reminds me that when Hamon attacks and destroys a monster in battle, his effect activates and you lose an additional 1000 life points!"

Bolts of lightning instantly began raining down onto Syrus, who only screamed out in pain once more before he fell completely flat onto the ground. His body instantly began nervously twitching while laying there. Slowly, the same white misty energy that had come out before began to pour out of his back once more.

"SYUS!" Hasselberry cried out with great concern.

"I wouldn't worry about your friend, for you're next!" the stranger yelled. "Raviel, dig your claws into that stegosaurus. Shimmering Slash!"

The blue creature roared loudly and pulled back it's powerful arm. It's sharp and deadly looking claws began to glow bright white as it made a sweeping motion across the dinosaur. The dinosaur roared out in pain while it was gutted before finally exploding. The massive explosion pushed Hasselberry backwards a few feet. He gritted his teeth and managed to keep from screaming out in pain, but fell to one knee as the blast subsided.

Panting hard, he grimaced when the white energy mist began escaping his body. Gradually, with difficulty, he stood back up fully and tried hard to slow his breathing.

"Sy…" he called out in a raspy voice.

Slowly, Syrus began to stir, and after a moment, began to move his body. With a look of pain, he pushed his body back up onto shaky hands and knees. He was panting heavily, and appeared not capable of standing, but after nearly a minute of resting, he managed to stand at long last.

Holding his side, Syrus said with a wheezing voice "We're not … finished yet."

Laughing at the statement, the stranger mockingly said "You will be soon enough. I place three cards face down. Let's see what the pair of you two can accomplish." (Syrus 2200, Hasselberry 1600; Stranger 5000)

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At the Slifer Dorm, Jaden and his friends were sitting in the recreation room reminiscing over old times with their new friends. Jaden had just told the tale about him facing off with the young girl, Blair, who was in love with Zane. After beating her in a duel, he had found out that the kid was only in grade school.

The gang all laughed at the story's end, where the girl told Jaden she liked him, and would be back for him. Jaden glared at Bastion who had told that part, and was about to start a tale about Bastion when suddenly he felt something and noticed the presence of his Duel Spirit, Winged Kuriboh.

Alexis, Chazz, and Mariah seemed to notice it immediately as well, with each gasping and turning to Jaden, whose eyes were wide.

"It can't be…" he muttered while his Duel Spirit was squawking.

Seeing something was wrong with the four, Bastion asked "What is it guys?"

Standing up and running for the door, Jaden called back "There's a Shadow Game going on, and I sense the Sacred Beasts too!"

While running in the direction of where he sensed the duel and that Winged Kuriboh appeared to be leading him in, he mumbled "And I sense Syrus and Hasselberry are there too."

The others immediately began following, each seemingly knowing danger was near.

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The calming sound of waves crashing against the pier could be heard in the background, and the familiar sight of the light from the lighthouse sweeping over the ocean was a wonderful sight in Zane's eyes.

Standing there, he sighed. "_Why haven't I told her how I truly feel? Is it due that I'm afraid of the answer, or is it due that she's still in school?_"

Sighing once more, his thoughts were interrupted by a sudden feeling that something evil had appeared. Ever since the year before, when he had a Spirit Key, he had been able to sense something different on a whole other plane of existence. He wasn't sure what it was, but the feeling he had gotten when he sensed things like this always had served him well before.

Glancing off in the direction of the disturbance, he saw darkness seemingly descending towards the Ra Dorm. "Strange…" he mumbled.

Then a feeling of someone he knew being there hit him. The person felt very familiar, and then it clicked.

"SYRUS!" he exclaimed as he ran in the duel's direction.

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"You damn cat, I warned you!" Illidan yelled as he held Pharaoh over a large tub of water by the scruff of his neck.

"_No, please, don't do it! It was an accident, I swear!_" Banner argued back, trying desperately to grab onto Illidan once more with his paws.

Marie stood behind Illidan with her arms crossed. The pair were in their casual clothes, which they normally wore in the evenings once classes were over. She only glared at the cat, saying "Sure it was! You just happened to accidentally push the door open to the bathroom while I happened to be changing clothes! It's a good thing I was still wearing clothes at least!"

Growling loudly at the thought of Banner peeking at Marie's body infuriated him even more, causing Illidan to evilly say "Bath time kitty!"

"_Please, don't!_" Banner protested.

Illidan was about to release the cat when suddenly his senses detected something. Stretching out with his Shadow Powers, he quickly realized it was a Shadow Game, and that he could sense the presence of the Sacred Beasts. He also sensed the energy of the stranger he had encountered, making him even more worried.

Something else then came to him. He knew immediately who was facing off with the stranger.

"SYRUS, HASSELBERRY!" he exclaimed in shock as he tossed the cat into the corner.

Marie had sensed it as well, and had her hand covering her mouth. "It can't be…" she softly said with worry covering her face.

Running out of the bathroom, Illidan made it to the door and slipped on his shoes quickly. Marie followed suit, and to their surprise, Banner joined them.

"_There is still time to save them!_" he called out as he ran out of the house when Illidan opened the door.

Following behind him, Illidan and Marie began running towards the duel.

"If they're facing the Sacred Beasts, this can't be good! Neither has had experience fighting in the Shadow Realm either! We have to hurry!" he called to Marie as he picked up speed.

Marie quickly matched his speed. The three ran hard, hoping they wouldn't be too late for the young students.

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Snickering at the pair before him, the stranger said "You two are pathetic. You'll never defeat me. Soon your souls shall be mine, and I will plunge this world into a new era!"

"You have to beat the two of us to do that!" Hasselberry spat back angrily.

Nodding, Syrus added "And we're not about to let that happen!"

Picking up his next card, Syrus lightly smirked. "Time to pay you back for last turn! I play the spell Monster Reborn, meaning I can bring back a monster. I choose my Drillroid (1600/1600)!"

The purple drill creature with a drill nose, drill hands, and tank tracks for feet reappeared onto the field with a loud drilling noise.

"Next, I play the spell card Power Bond! This card was given to me by my brother, and it's high time I use it correctly! With Power Bond, I can create a Machine Type Fusion monster, so I fuse Drillroid, Steamroid (1800/1800), and Submarineroid (800/1800) together to create Super Vehicroid Jumbo Drill (3000/2000)!"

A red and grey locomotive with wheel shaped hands and a face, along with a blue and yellow submarine that carefully held a torpedo in it's hands appeared beside the drill creature. The three suddenly were engulfed in a blinding light and vanished. In their place stood a new creature that was mainly purple with some pink, and had a huge drill bit nose on the front of it's body. It's eyes seemed to swivel a little while they looked about. It had massive tank tracks and a periscope like structure on the top as well.

"Thanks to Power Bond, my monster's attack points are now doubled (3000 2 6000/2000)!"

The purple/pink creature began to glow with white light as it's drill revved up. It glared at the two monsters across the field and seemed to dare them to attack.

"Next up, I play Gyroid (1000/1000) in defense."

A small blue helicopter with landing gear crossed as arms in defense took to the field on top of a horizontal card image.

Chuckling darkly, the stranger said "Big mistake. When you normal summon a monster, Raviel's special ability kicks in, allowing me to special summon a Phantasm Token (1000/1000) to my field, and I'll place it in defense."

A miniature version of the large blue and purple creature instantly appeared on the field with it's arms crossed.

Smirking, Syrus confidently said "I was hoping that would happen."

Curious, the stranger asked "Oh? What makes you think it matters?"

"Because now that token is wide open to an attack!" Syrus declared. "Jumbo Drill, attack that token with Drilling Smash!"

The large purple and pink creature revved up it's large drill and dug into the ground. Slowly, it began tunneling straight towards it's target.

Along the way, Syrus called out "Oh, by the way, something I may have forgotten to mention was my Jumbo Drill has a special ability. It has Trample effect, which means when it strikes that token, this duel is over!"

"Nice move soldier!" Hasselberry congratulated.

Pointing at the token, Syrus called out "Finish this duel Jumbo Drill!"

The drill creature suddenly broke through the top of the ground and began rushing forward towards the small creature. The small monster showed no fear as the drill monster continued on towards it.

Chuckling evilly, the stranger pointed a finger at one of his face down cards, saying "I activate a trap known as Astral Barrier! With this trap, I can redirect your attack from my monster to my life points directly!"

Both Syrus and Hasselberry could only gasp in shock as the small blue and purple creature dodged the drill creature, who was sent charging straight at the stranger.

"But that makes no sense!" exclaimed Syrus.

Laughing, the stranger replied "Of course it does, for I have another trap! I activate Spirit Barrier! Thanks to this, I take zero Battle Damage so long as I have a monster on the field. So, your little attack is pointless."

Syrus only gasped in horror as his drill monster struck a golden barrier surrounding the stranger. At long last, after grinding away on the barrier for a few moments, the creature called it quits and returned to Syrus's field.

"Great, just great. Now we can't attack his monsters, plus we can't do any damage to him! Just perfect!" Syrus said with frustration and a touch of worry.

Seeing Syrus starting to fall apart, Hasselberry encouragingly said "Buck up soldier. It's not over yet. Remember, a duel isn't over till the last card is played. That means we still have a chance, so hang on."

In a low mumble, Syrus said "Yeah…"

"You won't be around much longer anyways Mr. Truesdale." the stranger confidently stated. "Don't forget, Power Bond has a hefty price for using it. You will take damage equal to your monster's original attack points, thus finishing you off. Too bad, I was looking forward to a pummeling you some more."

Smirking at the stranger, Syrus replied "Oh, I'm not finished yet. I activate the spell card Mystik Wok! With this, I can sacrifice a monster on my field and add it's attack or defense points to my life points. I'll go ahead and sacrifice my Jumbo Drill, and add it's attack points to my score."

A large metal pot with a metal stirring rod above it instantly appeared above the field. The drill creature was immediately scooped up into the spoon and thrown into the pot. The pot shook slightly a few time before the creature within vanished.

"To end, I'll place a face down card. That's it…"

Interrupting, the stranger said "Not quite! Don't forget, you now take damage equal to your monster's original attack points due to Power Bond's effect!"

Syrus instantly began glowing with a dark aura and grabbed hold of his sides while screaming out in pain. He immediately sank to his hands and knees panting hard once the aura faded. Small wisps of his soul began to pour out of his back.

"I'll take it you end now?" the stranger mocked. (Syrus 5200, Hasselberry 1600; Stranger 5000)

Growling with anger, Hasselberry drew his next card. Glaring daggers at the stranger, he kindly said to Syrus "Take a break Sy, and let me handle this!"

Returning his attention to the stranger, he snarled out "I start by special summoning my second Gilasaurus (1400/400) to the field."

A new brown raptor dinosaur appeared beside of the face down monster card image.

"Next, I flip summon my face down monster back up, so welcome back Ultimate Tyranno (3000/2200)!"

The large black tyrannosaurus with large black spikes reappeared onto the field, letting out a large roar to make his presence known once more.

"Now I'll summon Archaeopteryx (300/1300) to the field!"

A blue and yellow ancient bird appeared on the field, letting out a loud squawk.

"Foolish move my young friend. Thanks to that, I can special summon another Phantasm Token (1000/1000) thanks to Raviel's effect." the stranger interjected.

Another miniature clone of the blue and purple creature appeared onto the field with it's arms crossed in a defensive stance.

Shrugging it off, Hasselberry replied "Don't matter to me. Time to get another Dino back in my platoon, so I play the spell Ultra Evolution Pill – Revised Formula. With this, I can sacrifice a Winged-Beast Type of monster for a Dinosaur Type. So, farewell Archaeopteryx and hello Super Conductor Tyranno (3300/1400)!"

The bird creature vanished in a small flash of light, only to be replaced by a large green tyrannosaurus, with metal covering parts of his body, mostly it's chest, tail, and part of it's arms. It had some spikes on the top of it's head, and red glowing eyes. It let out a loud roar, showing it meant business.

Chuckling, the stranger said "You're a fool. You can't even attack me with that thing, let alone do any damage."

Shaking his head, Hasselberry retorted "Not quite. You see, my dino has a very special ability. For each monster I sacrifice from our field, I can deal you 1000 points of damage! So, I sacrifice both my other dinos, which means you lose 2000 life points!"

Both the black tyrannosaurus and the brown raptor glowed brightly as the green tyrannosaurus roared loudly. Opening it's jaws, a red glow began to fill them. With a spitting motion, it shot two flaming red fireballs at the stranger, each impacting him heavily. The stranger slightly slid backwards a little bit, but showed no signs of pain.

As with Syrus and Hasselberry, small wisps of energy began to seep out of the strangers back, but again, he seemed to not even show any signs of pain.

"Sy, can I borrow a monster from you?" Hasselberry asked.

Slowly standing back up, Syrus nodded, causing Hasselberry to say "I now sacrifice Gyroid in order to deal you another 1000 points. Go get him boy!"

The small helicopter monster vanished in a display of glitter, causing the green dinosaur to roar loudly. Opening it's jaws once more, a red fireball began to form. With ease, the creature spat the blast out at the stranger, who was hit straight on. Again, he didn't seem to flinch in pain at all, even when wisp like energy began to pour out of his back.

"I place two cards face down. Let's see what you got!" (Syrus 5200, Hasselberry 1600; Stranger 2000)

Darkly chuckling, the stranger said "Before I draw, I activate the trap card Solemn Wishes. This allows me to gain 500 life points each time I draw a card. Now then, where was I?"

Picking up a card, the stranger laughed evilly, saying "I'm very surprised you two managed to hang on this long. Of course, it has been too long! I no longer need these three trap cards!"

"It can't be…" Syrus said in shock.

Laughing evilly again, the stranger yelled "I sacrifice my three trap cards in order to summon Uria, Lord of Searing Flames (0/0)!

Without warning, a large towering burst of flames went shooting into the air. From the tower of flames came a set of large red wings that had thin skin covering them that appeared to be attached to arms. Slowly, a red snake like body with a grey underbelly appeared from the flames that had many scales. The head of the monster had many spikes, and it had a massive set of sharp teeth. It let out a loud roar, making the ground shake from the power of it.

Staring at the monster with disbelief, Hasselberry slowly said with great fear in his voice "There is no way…"

Still laughing, the stranger said "You fools will soon be finished. I'm sure the two of you have noticed first of all that Uria has zero points. Well, he has a very special ability. For each continuous trap card in my Graveyard, he gains 1000 points. Currently, there are four in there, meaning he gains 4000 points (4000/4000)!"

The snake like dragon creature roared loudly once more as it's strength increased greatly.

"Four!? But how!? You've only played three trap cards so far!" Syrus said with confusion.

Chuckling, the stranger nodded, saying "True, but don't forget, I also discarded two cards earlier. One was a monster as you two saw, and the other was the continuous trap known as Wall of Revealing Light."

Both Syrus and Hasselberry lightly growled in frustration, knowing they hadn't caught this. They then turned their attention to the three powerful monsters glaring down at them.


	38. Chapter 38: First Casualties, Pt 3

**Hello again everyone! Well, I had a nice weekend. Friday, I saw my grandpa, who seemed to be doing pretty well from what I could tell. Me and him chatted a bit, and my grandma was there too. She left not long after I arrived and went to go check on her dog and get some dinner. By the way, in case I hadn't told everyone, he's in the skilled nursing home now. He's only 4, maybe 5 miles from home, hence why my grandma went to do her errands. Anyways, she asked if I wanted some hot dogs, which I said sure, and so did grandpa, lol. He asked for 2 with everything on them, hehe. She told him if it would make him better, she'd get him a dozen. Later, when she returned and gave me the box with them, he said he'd pass on having his hot dogs, lol. But it was a good time altogether. He seems to be doing a bit better. Saturday, not much else really happened. Me and my mate did our weekly grocery run, and watch Naruto, which was about it. Sunday, we helped move her mom into her new apartment. Then last night, hehe, we (/Gets smacked in head by mate.\). Never mind…**

**Ok, so over the weekend, I did work on finishing up this story, but didn't… I only have one turn to finish up, which is halfway done, and then a few cosmetic things to fix. But that's not what's important. What is important is the decision I came to Saturday. I've fought against it and finally, I've decided to go with it. I've decided to write another sequel to this series. (/Waits for all of the gasps and surprised looks.\) Even though I'll be working on it, I have decided to also try and work on my Inuyasha story, **_**Another**_**, also. Will it work out, I don't know. We'll see, lol. But that's all the news on the story front. I had wanted to end the series with **_**FG**_**, but my cursed imagination forced me into it, lol. That and me and my mate worked up a story line, lol. Btw, to any that have read her stories (**_**Cartoon Universes **_**and **_**The History of the Millennium Items**_**), she is going to attempt to work on them again. She's trying, but finding the time is hard. She'll get to it though, so patience.**

**Last time, Syrus and Hasselberry continued their fight with the stranger, who apparently has a much better ability to wield the Sacred Beasts than Kagemaru ever did. Still, the situation is bleak, but can the two Ra Yellows do it, or is this the end for them? And if it is, what repercussions will come from it?**

**Alright, time for the best part! Time to answer reviews!**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Heh, yeah, I know the feeling. I so wish Kingdom Hearts 3 was out… But anyways, yes, Kagemaru could have used the Sacred Beasts better, but this stranger seems to wield them as if he's used them before… Yeah, the stranger appears to know how to use his cards to his total advantage and then summon the Sacred Beasts to crush his opponents. Very true, the combo of Astral Barrier and Spirit Barrier is a very dirty little combo, but is rarely used anymore. Heh, in fact never really, lol. But yes, a good old Heavy Storm could fix that problem. Lol, yes, the idea of Roxas somehow tying in could be unfounded and useless. Heh, yeah, the other KH people is a big question. Lol, losing one's heart is sort of worse than losing one's soul. Well, hopefully the pace will continue as is. Thank you as always for your comments.**

**x-knight20: Thank you. Yep, all 3 Sacred Beasts are out now. Heh, Kingdom Hearts is a great game. I really liked both of them, and can't wait till the 3****rd**** comes out, although I'll need a PS3 for that… LOL! Yes, poor Banner, he almost got a bath, compliments of Illidan.**

**Knives91: Thanks. I shall try to keep it up.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Thank you. Lol, sure you don't. (/Whispers to Ryon: "I figured she had one, if not two shrines."\) Eh, I don't think Ryon is the type to keep shrines. Well, maybe one to me, hehe.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Good possibility, but you never know, the pair could win… somehow… by some miracle… or not, lol. Maybe Illidan and Jaden could, but you never know. Heh, maybe the duel is over. Thank you, and thanks again about grandpa.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Why say that, they could win... True, the cavalry maybe too late. Thanks for the comments!**

**ardee: Nope, the duel has yet to end. Yes, they survived a little longer. Good question about who Zane was talking about. Lol, yes, could be Blair. Hehe, yep, Banner finally pulled a stunt that nearly got him a bath. Yeah, I read up on the end of season 3, and that got me pretty fired up. Heh, the duel I've been talking about finishing, well, it'll be spectacular, I hope, lol. Yeah, the 3 chapters a week is to stay for now. Eh, I remember back when I wrote **_**ToP**_**, and the chapters were like 2500 words. Then in **_**TWS**_**, it grew to 3k. Now in **_**FG**_**, it's grown to 3.5k or more, lol. More like 4k at times, lol. They're getting longer and longer, thus making it harder and harder to have more chapters, but oh well. Thanks for the comments!**

**Wow, finally finished. It seems the reviews get longer and longer each time, but that's not a complaint. Actually, I'm rather glad, because it gives me a chance to explain. Thank you everyone for them! And I'm so happy, I'm nearing the 200 mark on reviews! And we're not even halfway yet! I've got a feeling, that maybe, just maybe, I can beat my old record for **_**ToP**_** if we keep this up! I just hope it's possible, but if it's not, it's not. Thank you all though for your reviews, and thanks again to Raymond Barrett for your PM.**

**Well, that's all I have for today. Tonight I head out to see grandpa again. Till next time, enjoy the chapter everyone! Later!**

**Chapter 38**

"I now activate Uria's special ability. Once per a turn, I can destroy one face down spell/trap card, so I choose your face down card Mr. Truesdale!"

Taking aim, the mighty red dragon roared loudly, sending out shock waves at the face down card. The card was instantly flipped up, revealing Syrus's trap, which was quickly shattered.

"No, my Life Force! I needed that!" Syrus yelled with complete worry and fear showing on his face.

Laughing at Syrus with evil in his voice, the stranger said "Too bad fool, but you will fall first. I activate Raviel's special ability, which allows me to sacrifice the two tokens on my field to him, thus raising his attack points by 2000 (4400 + 1000 + 1000 6400/4000)!"

Both smaller creatures vanished in a flash as the large blue and purple monster began to glow with a bright purple aura. The creature's eyes glowed brighter red as well while it's claws began shimmering brighter than before.

"Mr. Truesdale, you are finished." the stranger stated. Pointing at Syrus, he said "Raviel, give him your farewell with Shimmering Slash!"

Stepping forward, the large blue creature pulled back it's strong right arm, causing it's claws to began to glow even brighter than thought possible.

Taking a step backwards, Syrus's face showed nothing but true fear on it. "I don't have the points to survive." he whispered.

Seeing his friend's great fear, Hasselberry called to Syrus, saying "I'll block for you Private Truesdale, so don't worry!"

Shaking his head, Syrus sadly smiled at Hasselberry and sadly said "No, don't do it. You don't have enough life points to survive a blast either. Please, save your monster and fight on. I know you can win. If you beat him, I'll come back."

Looking at Syrus with surprise, Hasselberry hurriedly replied "No, I'd never leave a friend to a fate like that!"

"You have to! To win this duel, you have to hang on a little longer. You don't have enough life points to take a shot from him, so I'll take it. Please, try and win when I'm gone. I know you can."

"TIME IS UP! RAVIEL, FINISH IT!" yelled the stranger.

The blue creature continued on with it's attack, slashing Syrus hard across the chest, which instantly drew a spray of blood. The attack easily flung him backwards into the barrier that surrounded the three.

"SYRUS!" screamed a series of voices that were quickly approaching.

The group of Jaden's friends, along with Zane, and finally Illidan and Marie with Pharaoh arrived to find Syrus being flung against the barrier. Zane instantly ran towards the barrier, screaming out for his little brother.

"HANG ON SYRUS! I'M COMING!"

In a mere whisper, Syrus whimpered out "Big … brother…"

Upon saying those words, the barrier finally repulsed Syrus's body and sent him crashing to the ground with a sickening thud. A large set of claw marks instantly began leaking out blood that soaked into his yellow jacket. Wisps of the last of his soul energy then began to pour out of his body, causing his eyes to grow dull and void.

Hasselberry was quick to run over to his friend, with tears filling his eyes. He lightly began shaking Syrus's body, saying "Syrus, get up! Come on, get up soldier!"

Bashing his fist against the barrier, Zane cried out "SYRUS! GET UP LITTLE BROTHER!"

No matter how much Zane screamed, or Hasselberry shook, Syrus laid still. Seeing these results, Zane continued to bash the barrier with his fists, hoping to finally break through. Instead, pain flared up his arms, and blood began to form on his knuckles. Tears fell from his eyes as he ignored the pain and continued to pound on the barrier.

Everyone felt their hearts breaking while they watched Zane pound on the barrier. Finally unable to take it anymore, Illidan stepped forward and grabbed hold of Zane from behind and began pulling him away.

Zane only thrashed about in Illidan's hold, yelling "LET ME GO! I HAVE TO HELP HIM!"

"You can't help him now Zane. He's gone…" Illidan said with a sad voice.

Finally, Zane stopped struggling and went slack in Illidan's arms. Illidan released him as Zane simply fell to the ground in a heap, tears flowing down his face. "He can't be…" he said in a mere whisper.

Alexis ran over to his side and held onto her friend, trying hard to comfort him. Atticus did the same, and eventually a few others tried as well.

Turning back to the duel, Illidan let out a feral growl and glared at the stranger. "_Whoever he is, he will pay!_" he declared in his mind.

Sneering down at Hasselberry, who now had Syrus wrapped up in his arms and was embracing him, the stranger began laughing manically. "Ah, the destruction, it's so beautiful. Pity he didn't fight back more."

"SHUT UP!" Hasselberry screamed out. Slowly releasing Syrus, he laid him onto the ground and stood up, revealing that his tears were gone now, but his eyes had changed. Now they were feral looking. No longer did they hold a kind look, but held slit eyes that looked rather disturbing.

"YOU'LL PAY FOR WHAT YOU DID TO HIM!" he declared with a pointed finger at the stranger.

Seeing Hasselberry was losing himself to his own anger, Illidan yelled out "Don't give into your anger Hasselberry! You need to stay focused!"

"I'm more than focused! I'm ready to tear him in half!" Hasselberry screamed back.

Laughing again, the stranger confidently replied "We'll see. Don't forget, I still have two more Sacred Beasts to attack with. I believe it's time you were sent packing as well. Hamon, attack that dinosaur with Raining Lightning!"

The dull gold creature roared loudly as it opened it's jaws. Lightning bolts immediately began crackling around the edges of it's jaws. Opening it's mouth slightly more, a burst of lightning came streaking out and struck the large green dinosaur. The dinosaur roared out in tremendous pain till it was finally destroyed. The remainder of the blast moved on towards Hasselberry and struck him hard, making him cry out in pain and fall to one knee. A small bit of misty soul energy immediately began to float out of his body while he sat panting.

"You fool, you are finished! Hamon's effect kicks in now, so you take an additional 1000 points of damage. Farewell." the stranger remarked.

The group behind the barrier all gasped in shock while watching the sky start to light up brightly. Lightning bolts immediately began to rain down, marking the impending doom for the young Ra Yellow Student.

"He'll never survive!" Marie declared with great concern and worry.

"No, Hasselberry!" Jaden screamed out.

Without warning, Hasselberry suddenly stood back up and let out a primeval roar. His eyes were still feral, with the small slits.

Pointing at his two face down cards, he cried out "I'm not finished yet! I activate both of my trap cards! The first is Survival Instinct, but I'll explain it in a moment. The other, which I chain to my other, is known as Fossil Excavation! By simply discarding a card from my hand, I get to bring back a Dino from my Graveyard, so I'll send Sabersaurus to my Graveyard, meaning I can bring back my Black Stego (1200/2000) in defense!"

He immediately tossed the monster card into his Graveyard Slot, which was instantly sucked down. Nearly a moment passed before a different monster card slid back out and into his awaiting hand. Picking the card up, he instantly slapped it to his Duel Disk horizontally, causing a green stegosaurus with red scales down it's back to reappear onto the field.

Darkly chuckling, the stranger said "That was pointless. You'll still lose 1000 life points, regardless of what's on your field."

Smirking, Hasselberry countered with "True, but you forget that I have my other trap too! With Survival Instinct, I'm allowed to remove from play Dinosaur Type monsters from my Graveyard. For each that I remove, I gain 400 life points. I'll send all that are in my Graveyard, which happens to be five monsters, to the remove from play pile, which means I gain 2000 life points, making me quite safe from that attack of yours!"

Slowly, all five monster cards slid out of Hasselberry's Graveyard slot. Picking them up, he placed them within the remove from play slot. As he did, his life points instantly began to shoot up.

"Impressive. I suppose you are more of a challenge than I thought. Still, you will lose!" the stranger boldly remarked.

"We'll see." Hasselberry replied as the raining lightning struck him, making him scream out in pain. He sank back down to one knee, panting heavily as the small wisps of soul energy began to leave his body. Within a moment though, he was back on his feet, letting out a yell.

Smirking beneath his hood, the stranger said "Most impressive. I look forward to your demise. For now though, Uria, turn that dino into slag with Hyper Blaze!"

The red dragon roared loudly as it red flames appeared in it's jaws. Opening it's mouth wide, the dragon released a stream of hot flames that scored a direct hit on the stegosaurus. The dinosaur roared out at first from the flames, but within a moment it silenced and was incinerated.

"Continue to make this interesting for me boy." (Syrus 0, Hasselberry 1500; Stranger 2500)

The entire group behind the barrier, with exception of Zane, let out a sigh of relief.

"He dodged one bullet…" Marie slowly said.

Eyeing his friend, Jaden called out "You can do it Hasselberry! Show that guy what you're made of!"

Turning his head back to nod, Hasselberry said "Can do Serge!"

Returning his gaze to the stranger, he then drew his next card and instantly began smirking. "You're about to enter a world of pain! I summon Tyranno Infinity (?/0)!"

A large olive colored tyrannosaurus with what looked like to pointed yellow horns on it's head suddenly appeared with a massive roar.

"You are truly a fool. That creature cannot harm my Sacred Beasts. Besides, since you Normal Summoned a monster, meaning I get yet another Phantasm Token (1000/1000) in defense." the stranger boasted.

A miniature version of the large blue creature appeared onto the field with it's arms crossed in defense.

Smirking, Hasselberry replied "I wouldn't judge a dinosaur by it's looks. He has a very special ability. For each Dino that I removed from play, he gains 1000 attack points. Since I removed five, that means he gains 5000 attack points (5000/0)!"

The large olive dinosaur roared loudly as it's body began to glow golden. Energy filled the creature, making it roar even louder.

"I'm not through yet! I play the spell Soul Release! With this, I can remove up to five cards from my Graveyard, or yours, but I'll choose mine. I remove from play my remaining Dino, Black Stego, and that's all. Since I removed another Dino, which means my Tyranno Infinity gets stronger (5000 + 1000 6000/0)!"

Once more, the olive colored dinosaur roared loudly as it's body glowed golden. Again, the creature roared even louder as the golden glow dimmed.

Roaring loudly himself, Hasselberry pointed a finger at the large red dragon creature, yelling "Tyranno Infinity, take that dragon down! This is for Syrus!"

Rushing forward, the dinosaur began to gain speed as it headed straight for the large red dragon. Using it's tail to smack the ground, the dinosaur was launched into the air and plunged it's horns into the side of the dragon. With a deafening roar, the dragon crumbled into many pieces.

"I'll end. Know that that's just the beginning!" (Hasselberry 1500, Stranger 500)

"Sweet move Hasselberry!" Jaden congratulated.

"Good show!" added Bastion.

Marie lightly smiled, but noticed Illidan was still staring coldly at the stranger. "It's not over, is it?" she lightly asked.

Shaking his head, Illidan replied "No, I have a feeling it's not."

Back on the field, the stranger began laughing manically. "You have put up more of a fight than all of the other fools before you. I must admit, this is intriguing, but the result is still the same. You will lose your soul."

Picking up his next card, he said "I play Graceful Charity! With this, I can draw three new cards, but of course, two must go to my Grave."

Drawing three more cards, the stranger smirked within his hood, saying "I send my Ultimate Offering trap and my second Broww, Huntsman of Dark World to my Graveyard. Of course, by sending Broww, his effect kicks in, allowing me to draw a second card."

Picking up one more card, the stranger began laughing manically, saying "Your time has come boy. Prepare for the impending darkness. I first send this trap, my Call of the Haunted, to the Graveyard, thus activating Uria's special ability. By discarding a trap to the Grave, I can special summon him back to the field!"

A tower of flames suddenly began to rise up on the field, and from it came the large red dragon, letting out a loud roar as it had a turn before.

"I'm not afraid of that overgrown grass snake." Hasselberry boldly stated.

Chuckling evilly, the stranger replied with "You should be. You see, I sent two more traps to my Graveyard, thus raising Uria's power even more (4000 + 2000 6000/4000 + 2000 6000)!"

Hasselberry immediately faltered as he watched the dragon grow in strength. "It's dead even with my dino…" he mumbled.

"Exactly! But that's not all! I activate the spell card Offerings to the Doomed, which destroys your pathetic creature!"

Without any warning, the large olive dinosaur began to glow red. It roared out in pain, shaking it's head back and forth, trying to free itself. Finally, the pressure was too much and the creature exploded into millions of pieces, leaving Hasselberry alone on his field.

Gasping in fear, Hasselberry slowly stated "It can't be…"

Laughing manically once more, the stranger pointed at Hasselberry, saying "Attack him now Uria with Hyper Blaze!"

"Hasselberry, no!" Jaden screamed as he watched the red dragon preparing to fire.

With a mighty roar, the dragon released a stream of flames at Hasselberry, whose eyes went back to normal.

"I'm sorry Syrus… I tried…" he mumbled just as the flames engulfed his body, making him scream out inhumanly in pain.

Once the flames died down, Hasselberry was seen laying on the ground with smoke rolling off his body. Burns could visibly be seen covering his body in spots. The last of his soul immediately began to leak out in a wispy haze, causing his once happy eyes to dull and grow void.

"Hasselberry…" Jaden said in mere shock as he closed his eyes and fell to his knees.

Maniacal laughter instantly filled the air, grabbing everyone's attention. The stranger evilly said "Fools, I told both you that you couldn't stop me! Now join the others within the Sacred Beasts!"

The wisps of energy that were Syrus and Hasselberry's souls began to become visible once again. Their energy was quickly sucked in by the three large creatures, which roared with delight of gaining more power.

As the beasts calmed, the stranger walked over to their bodies and kicked each. Growling loudly, Illidan angrily yelled "Leave them be!"

Turning to Illidan, the stranger seemed to smirk underneath his hood. The stranger turned and began to walk away as the barrier dissolved.

Everyone rushed into the now open area to the two prone bodies. Zane reached to Syrus's first at a speed that everyone thought was impossible. The others huddled around the two bodies, trying hard to help them, while Illidan rushed forward towards the stranger.

"No where to hide this time!" he snarled at the stranger, who simply had his back to Illidan.

Glancing back at the others, Illidan yelled "Marie! Get them out of here, now!"

Marie looked up at Illidan and then walked up behind him, defiantly saying "I won't leave you here alone!"

Lightly grunting with irritation, Illidan replied "Please, get them out of here! We don't know if there is anyone else working with him or not, but if there is, at least you'll be there to help protect the students. Please, take them back to the school. I'm sure both Syrus and Hasselberry need medical treatment from their Shadow Game."

Looking at the pair on the ground, Marie lightly sighed. Turning back to face his back she started saying "But…"

"Don't argue with me!" Illidan interjected. "This guy is stronger than he looks. Our first priority is to get the others to safety."

Sighing once more, she nodded, but said "Alright, I'm going, but once I get them back, I'll return."

Glancing back in her direction, Illidan nodded, saying "Good, because I may need some help."

"Stay safe."

"You too Marie."

Using his Shadow Powers, Illidan whispered to Marie's mind "_And remember, I love you._"

Turning to the students, she replied back in his mind with "_I love you too._"

"Come on everyone, we need to clear the area quickly! Let's get them to the medical center." Marie commanded.

All nodded and rose up with the fallen students. Zane carefully cradled Syrus in his arms and instantly began running towards the medical center. Following behind closely was Jaden and Bastion, each shouldering Hasselberry. The remainder of the group soon followed.

Stealing a glance back at Illidan, Marie silently whispered "Please stay safe."


	39. Chapter 39: Memories, Pt 1

**Hey guys! Well, yet another exciting week is nearly half over. I saw grandpa Monday, and he was doing pretty good. They gave him a goal. If he can stand on his own and pivot on his good foot (right), and mange to get out of bed and into a wheelchair, his former doctor has guaranteed he'd come visit him at home instead of making him come to see him. My grandmother is very happy about that, and we both think that will give him more incentive to work hard. Other than that, life is going on. My mate is applying for a job she once had offered to her again, and hoping to get it. If she does, we'll move probably, which is alright with me. We'll see though. Never know what may happen.**

**Alright, here is the situation with my story. I finished wrapping up the duel I wrote for this story, and finished making a few changes. As of now, it's done! That means I can keep going on with posting 3 chapters a week! Also, last time I mentioned that I would be doing one last sequel to this story, which is still on. When it'll get done, eh, I'm not sure, lol. We'll see. Also, I have begun work on my Inuyasha fic, **_**Another**_**. My plan is to get one of my favorite authors to help co-write it, thus relieving some strain on me for working on 2 stories at once. As for my one shots/songfics, I still plan on doing them. When, I'm unsure, lol. I'll just have to make time.**

**Wow, I'm up to 199 reviews! Sweet! That's nearly half of what **_**TWS**_** had! I hope to continue to see this kind of great feedback! Btw, to show my appreciation to everyone for helping me reach the 200 mark, I'll post an extra chapter tomorrow!**

**Last time, Syrus and Hasselberry finally lost their duel. Illidan has decided to confront this stranger once more, and ordered Marie and the others away. Who could this person be, and can Illidan handle them alone?**

**Alright, time for the best part! Review Time!**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Yes, poor Syrus and Hasselberry! They hit him with everything in their decks, but it wasn't enough. Makes you feel sorry for them. But yes, this guy is far too skilled to have just started using the Sacred Beast Cards, but how could he be? Could it be he knows how to use them… or has some kind of connection? I know, that was evil, lol. It's cool about the KH's rambling. I really liked the game myself. I wish 3 was out! Heh, as for Chazz and the others, things could get intense for them. Thanks for the great review as always!**

**x-knight20: Thanks. It's cool about the short review.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Yep, they lost still, lol. Yeah, I thought about Hasselberry falling first, but then I was like, what if Syrus fell and Hasselberry unleashed all that 'Dino' power? He would be like Dino-mite! I know, bad pun, lol. Heh, I'm glad you like the idea that I'm going to do another sequel.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Lol, it is and isn't a bad combo to be pragmatic and pessimistic. I know I'm that way sometimes, lol. Thanks. Yeah, I do hope Marie finds time to write too.**

**Knives91: Lol, yes, lots of bodies. (/Hears 'Let the Bodies Hit the Floor' playing.\) Ah, that is beautiful. Thanks for the comments.**

**Ryon Nakura: Sure you do. (/Points to the flashing light shrine with my pictures covering the walls.\) If that isn't a shrine, what is? Why blame me? I never did anything wrong. (/Grins evilly.\)**

**ardee: Thanks. Yeah, I know, Syrus and Hasselberry summoned some of their best monsters out, which in real life, it don't happen, lol. Still, in the show it does, hence I gave them the cards to do what they could. I know, demons sounds better, but I've kept the beasts' title. Thanks though. Yep, the identity of our stranger shall be revealed soon. Yes, I'll continue this story on and on! Lol, but seriously, the next sequel is the end of the road for Illidan and Marie. I could have ended it in this one like I wanted to, but I think the next one will be good enough. Eh, nah, I don't follow American Idol. TV just isn't my thing anymore. Lol, I watch GX, Naruto, CSI, and some late night stuff, and that's about it. And before anyone guesses the late night stuff is porn, no. It's more like Futurama, Family Guy, and rarely Bleach. I mostly watch that at work. Thanks again for the comments!**

**Wow, that's it. The reviews seem to get longer and longer, lol. Thank you everyone for them, and tomorrow, I'll post to celebrate the 200****th**** review!**

**Well, that's it for me. Thank you everyone for your reviews. Till next time, enjoy!**

**Chapter 39**

Turning his full attention to the stranger, Illidan glared at him. The wind blew to his back fiercely, tossing his hair about. Above the pair, the sky seemed to slowly be clearing. At long last, he said "Last time you ran from me, but you won't get so lucky this time."

"You would never find me even if I ran again." the stranger confidently replied.

Smirking, Illidan retorted "Not so. That trick you used, I've seen it before. I know how to get through it now, so just try and run. I'll track you through hell if I have to in order to fix things."

Chuckling, the stranger calmly said "You haven't changed much Illidan. Even after five millennia, you're still the same."

"How would you know?" Illidan stoically asked.

Raising his arms, the figure slowly began to pull his hood back, revealing his face for the first time to anyone on the island. He had blonde and blue streaked hair, with it reaching his mid neck in length. His light blue eyes had a gleam in them, and there was a strange black tattooed mark on the side of his head. He smirked evilly, somewhat creeping Illidan out.

Examining the person, Illidan got the feint idea he knew this person, but couldn't place it. "_The mark, it is what I remember the most. Where have I seen him?_" he pondered.

Chuckling, the figure asked "Can't place my face, can you Illidan?"

"Feh, as if it matters." Illidan snorted back.

Again chuckling, the figure replied "Oh but it does. Surely daddy's little boy remembers his dad's best friend and second in command."

Illidan's eyes widened a bit at this declaration, making him slowly say "It's not possible… You're dead…"

"Almost correct Illidan. I'm sure you remember our little confrontation five millennia ago, don't you?" the stranger asked.

Slowly, memories began to fill Illidan's mind as he began to remember the face he saw before him.

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"Marie, it's far too dangerous for you to be going out! What happens if you're captured while out!?" a younger Illidan yelled at a younger Marie. Both were in their teens and dressed in ancient Egyptian garb.

It had only been a few months since Illidan had taken Marie on as a student. Her progress had been slow and steady, yet faster than most people. Still, friction continued to build between the two rather often, mostly resulting in an argument.

Placing her hands on her hips, Marie fired back "I can take care of myself, thank you very much! I'm in no danger when I go out by myself."

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Illidan calmly replied "Marie, I'm not saying these things to be mean, but think of what could happen. You are important to Yami, and are one of his personal servants. If you're captured, then someone could use you against Yami. They could ransom you, ask for the pardon of a prisoner, or even bring about Yami's death."

Seemingly taken aback by Illidan's words, Marie finally roared back "Do you think I'm that stupid to not know that!?"

Losing his patients, Illidan snapped back "Marie, I don't think you're stupid! You're a very intelligent girl, but you're also not strong enough to go wondering around…"

"SEE! You still don't believe me when I say I can protect myself!"

Groaning, Illidan growled back "Listen, you're my student, and I am charged to teach you all I can and tell what to do and not do. So, listen to me well. Don't go out of the palace alone!"

"You can't tell me what to do!" Marie fired back with venom in her voice and shot a hot glare at him. With that said, she stamped off with a huff.

Growling loudly, Illidan fired a sphere of Shadow Magic at a nearby water pitcher in the room, instantly shattering it. "Damn woman!" he yelled angrily.

Walking over to pick up the pieces, Illidan heard someone enter the room. Glancing to see who it was, he sighed when he recognized the man. "What do you want Gozaburo?"

"She sure is a hot head, isn't she?" Gozaburo asked with a smirk.

"How much did you hear?"

Shrugging, Gozaburo replied "Enough to know she isn't happy with you and about following orders."

Sighing, Illidan dropped the pieces of the pot and stood up. "I've dealt with some of the hardest heads imaginable with the nomads, most thinking I didn't belong, yet I showed them I did. But this girl, she takes the cake! How I'm ever going to get her to reign in her emotions and self control, I don't know!" Illidan said in exasperation.

"I'm sure you'll find a way." Gozaburo remarked.

"Maybe…" Illidan said with a sigh.

Looking over at Gozaburo, Illidan smirked and asked "Care for a duel?"

Thinking it over, Gozaburo hesitantly said "I guess…"

"Good. Maybe that'll help me calm down before she comes back."

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"That arrogant jerk, how dare he speak to me like that!" Marie fumed.

She quickly made her way through the streets of Cairo without stopping at her usual spots to shop. She always came out alone and did shopping for herself, and at times, for Yami and the others. They always warned her to not go out alone, but Marie was never one to listen to them. She was too free spirited to pay any attention to their rules, requests, or demands.

After an hour of storming through the streets, Marie finally came to the outer city shops. These had many materials not found within Egypt's borders. Usually, merchants from far away came to this place and sold their wares.

Sighing, she silently pondered on Illidan's words. "_He was right about one thing. I never did stop to think about what could happen if I ever got captured. Yami would be in trouble, and he'd do almost anything to save me._"

Her cheeks lightly warmed at the thought of Yami having to sacrifice everything to save her. Shaking herself of the thoughts, she sighed once more, knowing things between him and her were far from possible.

"_I'm a slave, and he's a pharaoh. The two just don't mix…_" she thought dejectedly.

Finally tired of fuming, Marie began to realize she should return to the palace. Glancing at where she was, she sighed once more and then smiled. "_Well, I might as well have a quick peak while I'm here._" she finally decided.

Looking through some of the shops, she soon spotted a beautiful golden dress with heavy straps that seemed to call out her name, but she instantly realized she had a problem when she began looking for her coin purse.

Feeling around, she cursed softly and grumbled "I forgot it. Great, I guess that means no shopping today."

Sighing, she began to slowly walk along, mostly glancing at the other shops. "At least I can make a note to come back tomorrow." she softly said to herself.

As she crossed into an alleyway, someone snuck up behind her and placed a cloth over her mouth. She tried to scream, but she breathed in something from the cloth. Immediately, she felt light headed and faint. Her mind slowly began to blank out and eventually she passed out.

A stranger wearing a set of black robes lightly chuckled darkly, saying "That was too easy. Now my dear, you'll be a great help in my plans."

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The duel between Illidan and Gozaburo had ended almost as quickly as it had begun. Once finished, Illidan left a spiraled eyed Gozaburo behind and decided he still needed something to do. He instantly set out to find Bakura, hoping the young man would spar with him.

Finally finding him, he asked his friend for a sparring session, who hesitantly agreed. When Illidan had returned from the nomads, every member of the Shadow Council was apprehensive at dueling or sparing with Illidan due to his immense strength at both activities. Illidan himself didn't mind this since he had mostly done a good bit of his physical training alone.

The sparring session didn't last too long between the two, with Illidan quickly making Bakura beg to end the session in less than five minutes. Sighing, Illidan agreed and the two decided to go cool off in one of the bathing pools.

Once the two were in the water, Illidan found a flat rock and rested up against it. Closing his eyes, he sighed, hoping to regain his calmness.

"Is something bothering you Illidan?" Bakura asked, snapping Illidan back into reality.

Opening his eyes, Illidan lightly frowned. After a moment, he said "I suppose so. Has Marie always been difficult to work with?"

Chuckling, Bakura replied "For the most part, except when she is working with Yami. She has a tendency to be rather stubborn, somewhat like another certain person here. Of course, for Yami, she almost always does whatever he asks of her."

"Haha, very funny. I'm not that stubborn." Illidan retorted.

Once again chuckling, Bakura responded with "Really? Could have fooled me."

Throwing a glare at his friend, Illidan sighed once more and sank into the water, letting it completely cover his body. After a moment, he came back up and pulled his hair so that it all was on his back.

After a moment, he finally said "Maybe I was too hard on Marie earlier."

"Is she that hard for you to get along with?" Bakura asked.

Sighing once more, Illidan calmly replied "Sometimes, she's so easy to get along with and does amazing things."

Pausing for a moment, his tone then changed. Growling out, he said "Then other times, she won't listen to a word I say! I get so infuriated with her over things she does or says, but somehow or another, I calm down and we move on. Ack, she's the first woman in my life that has nearly driven me into insanity!"

Laughing, Bakura jokingly said "Maybe it's true love!"

Groaning loudly, Illidan growled back "Don't even joke about a thing like that! I could never find myself doing that with her!"

Only continuing to laugh at his friend's expense, Bakura laughed more till he rocked backwards and slipped under the water. He soon came up for air, sputtering, making Illidan chuckle at his friend.

"Serves you right." Illidan smugly said with a smirk.

Sighing, Bakura grumbled. "I didn't want to get my hair all wet. Great, now I'll have to dry it out now…"

"Maybe I should dunk you some more so that this time it takes even longer to dry!" Illidan said with mischief sparking in his eyes.

As Illidan began to swim towards Bakura, a guard walked in and bowed, saying "Seal Master Stormrage, there is a note here for you."

Stopping his hijinks, Illidan began swimming towards the shallow end where his clothes laid. With a sigh, he said "You don't have to bow to me."

"It is tradition sir." the guard stoically replied.

Sighing once more, Illidan grabbed a towel and began to dry off. Tying it around his waist, he walked up to the guard and asked "Who is the note from?"

Rising, the guard replied "We're unsure sir. A peasant brought it in and then left. It was said to be delivered to you, without anyone tampering with it."

Frowning, Illidan asked "Was there anything odd about the peasant?"

"I'm unsure. He appeared normal, although his eyes did seem cloudy looking, almost like he was …"

"Being controlled?" Bakura interjected as he came wadding out of the water.

Thinking for a moment, the guard finally replied "Yes, I suppose. Still, he acted normal, and sounded normal. He even asked for a drink, which one of the others shared."

Furrowing his brow, Illidan grabbed another towel and began drying out his hair. Finally satisfied, he found his clothes nearby and turned his back to the guard. He quickly slipped them on and turned back around to face the guard. "Well, let me see the letter."

Nodding, the guard handed a scroll to Illidan. "You may go." Illidan remarked as he began to open the scroll.

As the guard left, Illidan began reading the letter silently to himself. The handwriting was somewhat messy, but after a moment, he finally deduced what the letter said.

"_Illidan, I wish to meet with you to discuss matters of great secrecy. Please meet me thirty miles south of the city. Do not under any circumstances tell any of the others of this matter. That is an order._

_Yami_"

Frowning, Illidan walked over to a nearby torch and dumped the scroll in, instantly catching it on fire. Looking at Illidan with a curious expression, Bakura asked "What is it?"

"Someone playing a trick on me, I figure." Illidan nonchalantly replied.

He immediately turned to leave, causing Bakura to call out "Wait, where you going?"

"Off to take care of this person. Don't worry, I'll be back later."

Nodding, Bakura smiled, saying "See you later then."

Walking off, Illidan silently pondered who the person was that wrote the letter. "_I know it wasn't Yami, that's a fact. Yami would personally come talk to me and ask me to meet elsewhere. Plus, that handwriting doesn't match his, not to mention it doesn't match any of the others in the council. He could have had a servant take it down, but unlikely. He usually only allows Marie to take down his notes anyways, and even then he signs them._"

Brow furrowing a little more, Illidan realized he hadn't seen Marie since their earlier argument. "_That hard head must be still sulking. I didn't mean to come down so hard on the girl, but she was putting herself in real danger. If anything ever happened to her, Yami would flip out and have my head on a platter for it._"

Sighing, Illidan continued his walk. Seeing Yami walking by with Set towards the courtyard, Illidan flagged down the pair.

"Pharaoh…" Illidan said with a humble bow.

With a slight sigh of irritation, Yami said "You don't have to bow to me Illidan."

Set only let out a small grunt at this, making Illidan slightly smirk with his face still down. Standing back up, Illidan said "It is tradition though."

"Tradition doesn't matter for my friends. Now, what can I help you with?" Yami asked.

Lightly smiling, Illidan calmly replied "I'm heading out for a while. I was wondering if you see Marie later, you'd tell her that her class today is cancelled."

"The Pharaoh is not a messenger boy!" Set growled out.

Chuckling at the comment, Yami kindly said "When I see her I will."

"Thank you. And tell her I apologize for this, but something came up. By the way, have you seen her since I talked with her this morning?" Illidan asked with a curious look.

Thinking for a moment, Yami finally said "I saw her storming down the hall near her room. I suppose she maybe in there. Did the two of you have another argument?"

Sighing, Illidan lightly nodded, saying "It's nothing to be concerned about. I'll talk with her when I return."

"Very well. See you soon Illidan."

Bowing once more, Illidan quickly turned and left Yami and Set. Yami lightly growled with irritation once more as Illidan left, yelling "STOP DOING THAT!"

Walking away, Illidan called back with a light chuckle "Never."

Once leaving Yami, Illidan made his way towards the stables. He met and greeted many of the servants along the way. For the most part, all of the servants liked Illidan. He was always hanging around with them. It was comforting to many to see a person of somewhat higher stature to be around. Even Yami himself was occasionally found around with the servants. Unlike many of the previous pharaohs who had held themselves in higher regards, Yami was kind and concerned, and chose to be around his people.

Finally leaving the main palace, Illidan found his way to the stables. Once inside, he found the stable hands working. The men working in the stable were quite nice, unlike the previous ones that had been executed when Illidan had arrived earlier a few months ago.

"_Seems like only yesterday that I saved Marie in here._"

Frowning, Illidan shook his head, realizing he was thinking of her again. "_Maybe I should go apologize for being so hard on her before I go…_"

After a moment of pondering on that thought, he decided against it. "_I have work to do first. I'll apologize later._"

Seeing Illidan standing in the main part of the stable, one of the stable hands walked up to Illidan. Looking at the ground, the man asked "Sir, do you wish for me to get your horse?"

Waking from his thoughts, Illidan nodded, saying "Yes, please, and you don't have to look down for me."

Smiling, the man raised his head and nodded. The young man vanished for a few moments, but soon reappeared with Illidan's horse fully prepared.

"Thank you." Illidan kindly said

"No problem sir." the stable hand replied as he walked off.

Looking over his horse, Illidan slightly smiled. He was a beautiful black stallion with a small amount of white surrounding his four feet.

Illidan had named him Stormy for a very good reason. During a hunting trip with Squall, he had become separated from the rest of the nomads. The horse he had been riding had gotten spooked by a sudden thunderstorm that had blown in. Cold, wet, and lost, Illidan was becoming rather desperate to just find some kind of shelter. In the middle of the intense storm, Illidan fell down from complete exhaustion. He would have laid there and probably died if not for a young horse coming up to him. The horse nudged him gently, making Illidan get back up. Confused, Illidan noticed the horse wasn't afraid of him. He took in the appearance of the horse through the many lightning strikes, and saw that he was nearly pure black, with exception of his four feet that appeared to have white socks. More surprised than anything, Illidan soon figured out that this horse had come to his aide. The horse soon turned and began to walk away, but waited on Illidan, as if leading him on. The horse led Illidan back to Squall and the others, who were very surprised to find him. Illidan was somewhat surprised when the horse did not leave upon leading him back to his party. Squall soon explained to him that the horse had chosen him to be his owner. He quickly explained that not many horses did this, but some who felt compelled to would choose a master. When asked what he would call the horse, Illidan only smiled, saying "Stormy."

Rubbing Stormy's head, Illidan smiled as the horse looked for some kind of food in his other open hand. "Sorry Stormy, I have no sugar for you. I'll get you a treat later." he affectionately said to the horse.

Walking around, Illidan mounted Stormy and moved the horse off in a slow pace towards the southern gates of the city. Once out of the gates, Illidan moved Stormy into a faster pace.

Two and half hours passed while Illidan rode. He didn't want to push Stormy too hard, thinking it would be nicer if he let the horse take it easy. Finally, he noted a figure on a horse off in a small distance.

Pushing Stormy onwards, Illidan began scanning the area for any signs of danger. He sensed nothing out of the ordinary yet, but still, he wasn't taking any chances.

Reaching the figure at long last, Illidan saw that the person was fully dressed in a black cloak. Beside of the figure stood a chestnut colored horse with some kind of blanket covering something on it's back.

Once Illidan dismounted Stormy, the figure removed his hood, revealing a man with blond hair that stuck up in the front like a rooster, while the rest of it remained flat. He had blue eyes, and a strange black tattoo on the side of his head. His body was lean and muscular, seemingly kept in good condition.

"Zell…" Illidan said with a bit of surprise.

"Well met, son of Shando. I see your memory hasn't failed you after eight years." Zell said with a small smile.

Frowning, Illidan replied "No, my memory hasn't failed me, but why are you here? Yami banished you from Egypt from what I heard."

"True. I finished what your father began that night he was killed and you fled. Raijin fell at my hands, but I was then treated like a traitor by that man's treacherous son!" Zell responded with a touch of anger.

Calming quickly, Zell smirked, saying "But that's in the past, and this is now."

"So, why have you called me out here? I doubt it was to reminisce about the old days."

Chuckling, Zell replied "You're very much like your father, Illidan. He always wanted to get straight to the point. You look very similar too."

"The point Zell." Illidan interjected with irritation building in his voice.

Smirking, Zell said "Well, as you know, the treacherous son of Raijin rules Egypt now. He must be removed. It is what your father began, and I will see it through."

Turning away, Illidan slowly walked away, saying "Ridiculous. You dragged me out here over something this stupid. What a waste of time."

"Illidan, you know your father wanted to get rid of the current ruling class and fix things. He wanted justice to return, and that is what we need to do."


	40. Chapter 40: Memories, Pt 2

**Hey there everyone! Well, not much happened yesterday. Just kind of went home to my lovely mate, and well, had a good evening, hehe.**

**Thank you everyone who has reviewed this story. I'm so happy that I've hit the 200 review mark! Since I am, of course, I feel like sharing that happiness, so here is a bonus chapter for the week.**

**Last time, Illidan confronted the stranger, who revealed himself to be a person from Illidan's past known as Zell. Memories of the last time he met Zell instantly flooded Illidan's mind. What happened to Marie then, and what did Illidan do about Zell?**

**Before I release it though, I have one thing to do. That's to do the reviews!**

**Knives91: Thanks. Eh, I'm not sure if they had chloroform. Heh, I kind of forgot to check on that when doing that chapter. I'm sure they had something though that would knock a person out. After all, flood someone's senses with enough of anything and it'll knock them out.**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Yep, Zell has finally revealed himself. Yeah, I heard KH3 was going to be the Keyblade War. I'm excited about seeing it and getting to play it. (/Can hardly wait!\)**

**pink-kiss-candy: Lol, yeah. But Ryon, it is a shrine to me. See, you have pictures of me up and it says "This shrine is dedicated to the malevolent half demon, Illidan." If that's not for me, I don't know what is, hehe. Nah, I never did anything wrong. Yes, just calm down. (/Watches more clay spiders fall from the ceiling and land on Ryon. Slowly steps back and watches the spiders explode. From the smoke, Ryon is left standing, covered in black soot. He opens his mouth in anime style and blows out smoke rings.\) That looked a bit painful…**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Hehe, yeah, the good old memories, lol. Yep, I finally finished writing on this story, well, other than making a few adjustments when I post. I always find little things when I proofread it again… But yes, 3 chapters for sure from here on!**

**Isis the Sphinx: Yep, sure is interesting. Eh, Zell wasn't originally evil, no. Actually, I think if you read the last chapter of Marie's fan fic, **_**The History of the Millennium Items**_**, it explains what Zell did actually. That's if that chapter is up. She said it was… so it should be, lol. Yeah, he wanted to better his country… in his own way, lol.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Yeah, that's the last thing you want. Heh, that would have been odd if Zell had been Illidan's father (btw, his name is Shando). Hmm, could he be reincarnated or brought back from the dead? Or are there other possibilities? As for the Sacred Beasts possibly being connected to him, hmm, I don't know. But yes, the Sacred Beasts should have been called by their original name: The Legendary Demons. That is a much better title, but I kept the show's namesake, so oh well, lol. Yes, Illidan and Marie are so incredibly in love in the late past and in the future, but when they first met, they two didn't get along at all. The pair had many fights and just didn't see eye to eye, but I guess like you said, that built up a strong relationship between the two. Yes, love isn't easy to figure out, ever, lol. Thanks for your comments.**

**ardee: Congrats on being # 200! Heh, yes, you were right, Zell is the villain… maybe, hehe. Yes, the lovebirds at one time were at one another's throats constantly, but that probably helped the pair get closer really. LOL! Yes, I thought the line by Set was great. True, the line did reflect his attitude in the present. Eh, the duels are coming, so patience, lol. It could be an old school style duel though, hehe. Eh, as for the late night stuff, why bother when I have my mate to keep me more than entertained. Thanks for the comments!**

**Alright, that's it for this round. I'm glad everyone liked the last chapter. Thank you to everyone who sent me a review. Till next time, enjoy!**

**Chapter 40**

Stopping, Illidan looked over his shoulder and calmly said "My father never wanted to murder an innocent person. Yami had nothing to do with Raijin's decisions. Raijin paid for his transgressions and Yami has atoned for what has happened in the past and brought back justice, hence what my father set out to accomplish is finished. There is nothing left."

Lightly growling, Zell yelled "He'll kill you eventually! You know his father tried it! Raijin was afraid of you, and Yami is without a doubt like his father. Stop him now while you still have a chance!"

Turning to face Zell again, Illidan searched his face. After studying it for a moment, he replied "Feh, you're crazy. Pegasus told me you had gone insane when my father died, but I didn't believe him. Now I do, and I can see that you're just foolish enough to try this stupid plan of yours."

In a cold, emotionless voice, Illidan added "If you make any kind of attack on Yami, you will have to deal with me specifically. I will not allow you to harm my friend."

"You would turn your back on the very man that was like a brother to you!? The very man that was your father's best friend for that murder's son!?" Zell asked, in somewhat shock.

Still staring at Zell with cold eyes, Illidan replied with a voice of coldness, saying "I will not allow you to harm Yami."

Turning to walk away again, Illidan heard Zell growl loudly, yelling "YOU UNGRATEFUL BRAT! YOUR FATHER DIED TO SAVE YOU, AND YOU REPAY HIM BY BETRAYING HIS DREAMS!"

The words instantly brought Illidan to a halt. He slowly turned around to reveal a cold glare that made Zell take a step back. With venom dripping in his voice, Illidan replied "You don't know what you're talking about. My father saved my life so I could live happy and one day return to Egypt with pride. He never envisioned having me rule Egypt. He only wanted to rid Egypt of Raijin. Father had no intention on ruling in Raijin's place. Not even I could have. Too much blood would have been spilled for the people to follow, not to mention neither father nor I had any desire to rule Egypt."

Again turning his back to Zell, Illidan evenly said "Do as you please Zell, but I won't help destroy a good person."

Loudly growling, Zell turned to his horse and ripped the blanket off of it's back. "You may not willingly help me, but I will have your help! Refuse and this girl will die!" he screamed at Illidan.

Stiffening at the comment, Illidan closed his eyes, pondering what poor innocent girl Zell had kidnapped. The breeze suddenly shifted, blowing many scents towards Illidan. Taking a sniff, Illidan caught a familiar scent of vanilla. "_Can't be…_" he mumbled in his mind while fear began to fill him.

Turning around, Illidan looked at the unconscious form of a very familiar girl on the back of Zell's horse. "Marie…" he softly mumbled.

Smirking at this, Zell walked towards Illidan, asking "Will you let her die for your stubborn pride as well?"

"Let her go. She has nothing to do with me or you." Illidan sternly replied.

Sneering, Zell said "No. She is very important to the Pharaoh. More than likely he has his way with her nightly. I'm sure he'll miss his royal sex slave."

"You will stop slandering her now." Illidan smartly said with anger on the edge of his voice.

Chuckling evilly as he ventured out a little further from the horse, Zell asked "Strike a nerve? What's wrong Illidan, you was full of swagger a moment ago."

"She is innocent, so let her go." Illidan demanded.

"No. I won't let the Pharaoh's whore go." Zell boldly replied.

Keeping his emotions in check, Illidan began to call up his Shadow Powers. A black aura instantly began to flare up from his body as his power began to rise to the surface. "I won't tell you again: release her now, or feel my wrath." he evenly said.

Upon issuing his statement, Illidan noted Marie coming to. She groaned lightly and opened her eyes and slowly began to she sit up. Immediately, she saw Illidan and some man were in the middle of a conversation, and that Illidan's Shadow Powers were flaring about him. Quietly, she decided to remain still, hoping that the man in front of Illidan wouldn't notice she had come to.

Standing his ground, Zell only laughed at Illidan. "So, you'd kill me to save her? Well then, I have no choice."

Pulling a large hollowed out reed out of his cloak's inner pocket, Zell quickly turned and blew into the reed while targeting Marie. A small dart instantly went flying out of the reed and pricked Marie in her upper chest, right near her heart, making her cry out in pain.

Forgetting Zell, Illidan rushed past Zell with inhuman speed thanks to his Shadow Powers. Reaching her, his Shadow Powers dissipated immediately. Without hesitation, Illidan gently pulled the dart out, making Marie whimper lightly in pain. Raising it to his nose, Illidan took in it's scent and tried to figure out what Zell had shot her with.

"It was filled with a rather deadly poison Illidan. This lovely poison will slowly paralyze her body and render her Shadow Powers useless. The creature I had to take it from was very much not willing to give it up, but it eventually donated it to me. Of course, I have the antidote, but I won't administer it till you've completed your task."

Pausing, Zell sneered, saying "She will die slowly and painfully unless you deliver Yami to me. You have till the end of tomorrow, and that is all. At the end of the tomorrow, she will die unless Yami is brought to me. Make no mistake Illidan, I will let it happen!"

"Illidan…" Marie said with tears threatening to fall from the brim of her eyes.

Trying to calm her, Illidan gently said "Don't worry. I'll get you the antidote, no matter what. You're my student, and I promised to protect you."

Turning back to Zell, he growled out "She's coming back with me."

"No she's not. This poison is ancient Illidan, so don't even think of trying to find the antidote. Fetch me Yami and bring him to the cave where me, you, and Shando used to camp at, and I will then release her to you, along with the cure. Fail to complete your mission and her life is forfeit." Zell stated with coldness echoing in his voice.

Finally realizing he didn't have time to argue, Illidan turned to Marie and softened his looks. "I promise I will save you, no matter what. Please, just be patient." he softly told his apprentice.

She shook her head and in a warning tone said "Don't bring Yami here. I don't want him to get hurt due to me."

"Don't worry. He won't be." Illidan replied calmly.

"I mean it! Don't bring him here Illidan! He doesn't need to get hurt due that his slave failed him…"

Hushing her, Illidan shook his head, saying "Don't worry; he won't be in any danger. For now, just try to relax and save your strength."

Tears slowly slid down her cheek as her eyes softened. Softly, she mumbled "You were right."

"Huh?" Illidan asked, unsure what she was saying.

"You were right about me going out of the palace. Look at the mess I've caused." she dejectedly said, causing more tears to slip down her cheek.

Shushing her, Illidan softly smiled and wiped away a few of the tears with his thumb. "I was too hard on you about that, and I apologize. Don't worry, I promise I will come back and save you. You know I never break a promise, right?"

Feeling slightly better, Marie lightly nodded and stopped crying. Leaning forward, Illidan embraced her and soothingly said "I will return for you. Just hang on."

Pulling back, Illidan offered a soft smile and then quickly turned around and began to run towards Stormy. As he passed Zell, he coldly growled out "This isn't over."

"I doubt it is." Zell calmly said with an evil smirk.

Continuing on, Illidan leapt onto Stormy and turned him towards the city. Giving one last fleeting glance at Marie, Illidan spurred Stormy and yelled out "YAH!"

Stormy reared up a little and immediately broke into a full gallop for the north. Glancing back one last time, Illidan silently vowed "_Hang on Marie. I promised to save you, and I will keep that promise, even if it kills me._"

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After nearly an hour and a half of pushing Stormy hard, Illidan finally made it back into Cairo. Slowing Stormy down to a canter, he quickly made his way for the palace. Arriving at the stables, he patted Stormy on the neck and quickly dismounted.

"Thank you Stormy." he kindly said with another pat.

Seeing a stable hand coming forward to collect Stormy, Illidan said "Please, make sure he's given extra grain and plenty of water, as well as a good wipe down."

The hand nodded, saying "Yes sir."

Running into the palace, Illidan quickly began his search for the others. He immediately found them sitting together in the courtyard, seemingly having a discussion on something. Immediately, they took notice of him running in and stopped their chat.

"Marie's been captured!" he panted out.

Yami's eyes instantly widened. "What!? How!? Who!?" he asked in a demanding voice.

Taking a deep breath, Illidan calmed himself and said "Zell captured her. I'm unsure how he did it, but he definitely has her. He had sent me a letter earlier today, pretending to be you. I knew it wasn't, but I wanted to see who had the gull to impersonate you. So, I rode out to the designated spot that he picked out."

"And!?" Yami impatiently asked.

"He asked me to help overthrow you, saying that it was my father's last wish. I told him I wouldn't harm a friend, and that you were a good Pharaoh, but he refused to hear of it. Finally, I told him if he tried anything, I'd stand by your side against him. That's when he pulled a blanket off of his horse. Marie was laying there unconscious. She came around finally when I was about to fight him, but instead of fighting me, he shot her with a blow dart full of poison."

"What kind of poison?" Shadi asked, instantly interrupting the conversation.

Pulling the dart out of his cloak, Illidan handed it to Shadi and said "This is the dart he hit her with. I've not seen nor heard of the kind of poison that he used. Whatever it is, it reeks. He said it came from some kind of creature, and that the poison was very old."

Examining the dart carefully, Shadi nodded and asked "Did he tell you anything else about it, like it's effects?"

"Yes, he said it would paralyze her body and render her Shadow Powers useless over the course of one day. At the end of the day, her body will give out due that the paralyzing agent would completely paralyze her lungs to the point she can't breath." Illidan said while trying hard to remain calm.

Turning to Yami, Shadi said "Yami, if it is alright with you, I would like to examine it and see if we have any cures in our stores, or if I can create a cure for it."

Nodding quickly, Yami replied "Yes, please hurry. Time is of the essence."

Standing, Shadi left the group quickly. Yami impatiently then asked "Is there more?"

"He told me to bring you to a location where my father, he, and I used to stay at times when we camped out. It's about a half a day's journey there." Illidan evenly said.

Looking at the ground, he added "If I don't, Marie will die from the poison. He promised to cure her if I brought you."

"Pharaoh, you cannot go." Set immediately stated.

Standing up, Yami turned away from the group and pondered what to say for a moment. After taking a few moments to think things through, he finally said "I have to go to Zell. It's the only way to save Marie."

"Not if Shadi finds the cure." Bakura injected with a small bit of hope.

Angrily turning towards Illidan, Yami roughly grabbed hold of Illidan's collar and growled out "Why didn't you protect her from Zell!?"

"I wish I could have, but it seems after our little argument this morning, she left to cool off. I don't know how Zell got her, but if I had to guess, possibly, she went out of the palace." Illidan calmly said with a hint of sadness in his voice.

Growling angrily, Yami gripped Illidan's collar tighter, yelling "You should have followed her! Or at the least, went with her!"

Lowering his eyes below his bangs, Illidan whispered "You're right…" 

Moving quickly to Yami's side, Bakura interjected "There was no way to know that this would happen."

Shaking his head, Illidan miserably said "No, he's right Bakura. I took Marie on as my student, and promised to protect her. I failed today…"

Letting out a frustrated sigh, Yami let Illidan go and looked down at the ground. With dripping sadness in his voice, he said "No, you're wrong Illidan. Marie is hard headed and strong willed. If she wanted to leave the palace, she'd have found a way. It's not your fault. I'm just angry that there isn't much I can do right now."

Patting Illidan on the back, Yami added "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to blame you like that."

"I know, but it is my fault…"

"It's not!" Yami quickly said, cutting Illidan completely off.

"I hate to interrupt the two of you, but we need to figure out what to do about this matter." Pegasus calmly interjected.

The two calmed down and sat back down with the others. After a moment, Bakura gently said "Perhaps we should all go and attack."

"No, that wouldn't work. I believe Zell is a great deal stronger than he's letting on. I could sense tremendous power within him, but he didn't show any of it." Illidan commented.

Turning to Illidan, Yami asked "What do you think is the best course of action is then?"

Thinking for a moment, Illidan finally replied "The best choice of action I can think of is let Shadi have some time to research the poison. Maybe he'll find the cure. In the meantime, I think if time runs out, I should go alone to fight Zell."

"Unacceptable. You can't fight Zell and save Marie. Someone else has to go." Set stated.

"Zell is quite strong I believe. How strong, that I'm not sure of. Maybe even stronger than me, I don't know." Illidan calmly replied.

Silence fell upon the group for a minute before Pegasus finally asked "Wouldn't a group of three be a better idea to combat this problem?"

"Why three?" Gozaburo asked with a clueless look.

"Well, two of the group of three could fight Zell while the third tries to help Marie. Once Marie is out of harms way, the other person could rush back into the battle." Pegasus explained.

"But who are the three?" Bakura asked.

"I have to go since I know the way." Illidan stated.

"And I must go due that Zell wants me." Yami added.

The group turned to Yami, with Bakura saying "Yami, you can't go. You'd be in danger."

"I realize that, but I am second strongest of this group. Plus, Marie is my friend and personal servant. I will never abandon her." Yami remarked with sureness in his voice.

Bakura was about to argue the point when Set suddenly said "I shall go as well. Since me, Yami, and Illidan are the strongest of the group, we shall go and fight Zell."

"That's very kind of you to want to help Marie." Illidan commented with a smirk.

Growling, Set replied "I'm doing this to protect the Pharaoh, not to save Marie."

Slyly smiling, Illidan sarcastically replied "Sure you are."

Interrupting, Yami said "Anyways, we need to prepare. Illidan, how long will it take to get to the cave?"

Thinking for a moment, Illidan finally replied "If we hurry, I'd say at least twelve hours. Father and I usually took it easy, thus it took all day. But since time is important, I think we can pull it off in twelve hours, so long as we keep our horses at a gallop."

Nodding, Yami said "Alright. We will rest for a few hours for right now. I'm sure your horse is already worn out anyways Illidan, so perhaps you should get another."

"Stormy will be fine. He was bred for long trips and little rest. He'll be fine within an hour or two." Illidan quickly replied.

"Very well then. For now, let's go check on Shadi's progress. Hopefully he'll find a cure to this poison." Yami remarked.

Sighing, Illidan said "I hope so, but Zell seemed to think we wouldn't. He said the poison was ancient."

Pausing for a moment, the then grinned and said "Then again, he didn't think about bookworm Shadi researching it."

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Within a cave of Zell's choosing, Marie lay on her back on a cool flat rock. She was already noticing that parts of her body were tingling and slowly numbing. She had tried several times to call up her Shadow Powers once Zell had left her alone, but failed miserably.

"_I just can't seem to focus for some reason, and without my focus, my powers are useless. Is that what Zell meant by it rendering my powers useless?_"

Turning her head to look around the cave, she saw carvings of three powerful creatures in a small room across from her. They looked rather strong, with each semi resembling other carvings she had seen elsewhere. Thinking hard, she began comparing them to carvings she thought she had seen before. After a few moments, she realized they reminded her of the Egyptian Gods.

"_They all look similar to the Gods, but how is that possible? I could ask, but I doubt I'd get any answers._"

Her thoughts were soon interrupted when she heard someone coming into the cavern. Glancing towards the entrance of the cavern she was in, she watched Zell slowly slink in and smirk.

"Still here I see. Soon Illidan will bring me Yami, and you'll be free from that tyrant." Zell confidently boasted.

"I wouldn't count on it! Illidan will fight you till the end before he'd hand over Yami!" she snapped.

Chuckling darkly, Zell replied "I doubt he'd let his student die. His honor wouldn't allow him to lose someone that close to him. And besides, you're precious to that foolish man who calls himself Pharaoh! He would never let his whore die."

Growling loudly, Marie venomously fired back "I'm not his whore!"

"Sure you're not." Zell simply stated.

Furious, Marie tried to get up, but found her body was far number than she previously found it to be. "_I can't… I can't move my body!_" her mind screamed.

She then glanced at Zell and saw he was noticing that she had figured this out, and he licked his lips. "I must say, the Pharaoh does have good taste. I bet you would be rather good."

Fear fell upon Marie as she knew what Zell was thinking. This was the same fear she had felt before when the stable hands had cornered her one day, but Illidan had saved her then. Now Illidan was nowhere nearby to save her. Not even Yami was close to protect her.

Zell slowly approached her, examining her like a fine piece of meat. She struggled to regain some movement in her body, but it was so sluggish that she could hardly move at all. "Please, don't…" she whimpered out.

Completely ignoring her protest, Zell continued to move closer. Desire and lust filled his eyes and began spilling out. With his hands only a few inches from her chest, he suddenly stopped and frowned. A loud audible sigh was then given as he stood there staring at her.

Seeing his frown, Marie realized maybe he was having a conflicting thought. At long last, he backed off, muttering under his breath.

"You're lucky I don't show you what a true man is like. If not for the fact that poison would accelerate and kill you, I would take you now. But I need you alive, so be thankful." he uttered.

Letting out a sigh of relief, Marie tried to reign in her emotions. "_The more I struggle, the more paralyzed I feel._"

Thinking for a moment, she finally reasoned out why. "_The movement, it accelerates the poison. So, if I stay calm and lay still, I should be fine, I hope._"

Looking at the door which led to freedom, Marie lightly sighed. "_Please Illidan, come back soon._"


	41. Chapter 41: Memories, Pt 3

**Why hello everyone! Well, not much happened yesterday. I mostly worked on my Inuyasha fic some last night and gathered up more ideas on it. Other than that, not much happened since my mate had work till 10, which sucked, lol. She left a while ago for a job interview with a company she got a job offer from before. Hopefully, she'll get it, but if she does, that means I'll be moving… Joy, lol.**

**Well, I've gotten a good bit written on my Inuyasha fic, but have yet to be inspired to work on the sequel to this story. Heh, I just can't find the inspiration for some reason. I had it this past weekend, but now I've lost it and am back to writing on Inuyasha, lol. At least it's coming along nicely. I've already finished a chapter on it, plus I've outlined some more stuff on it, like who the villains are, and what they are after. Oh yeah, I'm receiving some help from a great author off this site also. Her pen name is Sorry Charlie, and I suggest that if you're an Inuyasha fan or KH's fan, that you read her story **_**Starset**_**. It's a lovely crossover, and I can't get enough it seems. Anyways, I will try and work on the sequel to this story sometime in the near future. It's just the fact I have to get inspired for it, lol.**

**Last time, Illidan found out Zell had kidnapped Marie, and is now holding her hostage and using her to blackmail Illidan into killing Yami. Shadi is searching for a cure, but is there one? And more importantly, what will become of Marie?**

**Alright, time for some great review reading time! I know, that made absolutely no sense, lol.**

**ardee: Thanks. Yeah, I figured that chapter explained stuff, but it had to be said, lol. True, Raijin was a tyrant who ruled with an iron fist. You should read my mate's story, **_**The History of the Millennium Items**_** to find out more on how much of a tyrant he really was. There is a way there through my profile if you're interested. But yes, it's hard to tell who is more despicable, Zell or Raijin. Heh, it's kind of funny, Zell killed Raijin in cold blooded murder, yet says he's helping. Eh, he's not that cool now, lol. Yeah, coming onto Marie while she's unable to fight back is rather evil. Truthfully, when I wrote that part in, it did burn me up as well. I hate people who do stuff like that in real life. It's something I'm just totally appalled to and would demand the death penalty on, lol. Seriously, it's something that goes against everything I stand for. Why I wrote it, well, just to illustrate how bad off Zell really was. The present day struggle will come, but it takes time. Thanks for the review!**

**x-knight20: Thanks, and yes, she's in trouble once more. Lol, seems like she can't stay out of it.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Yeah, I saw the one you were talking about, but I decided to leave it. Thanks for the review!**

**pink-kiss-candy: Yeah, a bit scary, lol. LOL! That's good to know Ryon. (/Watches dozens of clay birds land on Ryon's shoulder. Ducks and covers head.\) FIRE IN THE HOLE!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Heh, yeah, it is a semi confusing chapter, but it explains out everything. Thanks, and it was no problem to post a bonus chapter.**

**Alright, that's all for the reviews today. I'm glad everyone liked the bonus chapter. Now then, I'm going to give you all a chance to get another one, hehe. That is, if anyone can answer this question.**

**Where did I get the character Zell from? I'm talking anime, game, etc, etc. Post the answer in your review, and if you're right, I'll post another chapter today! Or tomorrow, lol, if I don't get the answer immediately, hehe. Good luck to you all.**

**Well, I'm done for today. Enjoy the chapter everyone. Later!**

**Chapter 41**

"Any luck yet?" Illidan asked for the twentieth time in the last two hours. Shadi had been at it nonstop for four hours since Illidan had returned, but with Illidan and Yami asking every few minutes, he never could keep his concentration.

Groaning, Shadi irritably growled out "No, and I won't if you don't stop disturbing me!"

Sighing, Illidan softly said "Sorry."

Walking across the room to where Yami sat, Illidan examined a set of scrolls sitting on the table before him. They looked rather ancient, but seemed inviting to be looked through.

As Illidan reached out to pick one up, Shadi sharply said "Don't touch those."

Looking back at Shadi, Illidan saw he has his back to him still, and had not moved an inch. "_How the heck did he know I was looking?_"

"AHA!" Shadi yelled, making Illidan and Yami slightly jump.

Both quickly rushed to Shadi's side, with Illidan asking "Did you find it?"

"Yes, I finally did. This poison is known as Serqet's Milk."

Raising an eyebrow, Illidan asked "Could you be a little clearer?"

Sighing at his friend, Shadi replied "In simplest terms, this is a type of scorpion's poison. This specific scorpion died out around fifteen hundred years ago. They're poison was infamous for paralyzing people and making it look like an accident. Actually, a few …"

"This is fascinating and all Shadi, but time is important here! Is there a cure?" Yami asked with some irritation.

Reading further, Shadi finally nodded, saying "Yes, there is. It appears that the cure was made in mass quantities up to a thousand years ago."

"We need to make a vial quick. What do we need?!" Illidan asked quickly.

"It would do us no good." Shadi replied immediately.

Shocked, Yami roughly asked "Why is that!?"

"The cure takes two days to make. There is no way to make the cure in time to save her, and you said she'd die at the end of tomorrow, so it's pointless to make some."

Hearing this, Illidan softly mumbled "No…"

Yami, somewhat distraught at this fell to his knees, muttering "Marie…"

"There is hope though." Shadi said as he turned to the two. A smile had formed on his face, making both Illidan and Yami frown.

"How can you smile at a time like this!? Marie is going to die because I couldn't save her in time!" Illidan screamed.

"Actually, no, she won't." Shadi calmly stated.

Standing up, Yami asked "How?"

Walking over to the near wall, Shadi opened a small chest. After a few minutes of looking, Shadi finally pulled a vial out, saying "Due that we have the cure on stock."

Both Yami and Illidan's eyes lit up, with Illidan asking "Are you serious!?"

Nodding, Shadi showed the vial, saying "Even though the scorpion has been dead for nearly two millennia, and the cure hasn't been needed, the cure has been preserved. It was just in case something like this would happen."

Illidan and Yami both let out a sigh of relief, with Yami asking "We can save her then?"

"Yes, so long as she drinks this before the time is up." Shadi reiterated.

"Good." Illidan said with a happy sigh.

Reaching out, Shadi carefully handed Illidan the vial, saying "Just make sure not to lose or smash this vial. It's the only antidote that is made up as of right now."

Placing it within his cloak, Illidan nodded, saying "Thanks, and I will be careful with it. It holds Marie's life within it."

Turning to Yami, he said "We should leave soon so we can find Set."

"Agreed. Let's go get him and head out."

Running down the hallway away from Shadi, Illidan called out "Thanks Shadi!"

Shadi only stood in the room for a moment, and finally said to himself "No problem. And good luck."

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Nearly eleven hours after leaving the palace, Yami called for the others to stop at a nearby cave. Dismounting, Yami walked into it, with a fuming Illidan following.

"Why are we stopping!?" Illidan demanded.

"We need to rest before the battle Illidan. If we're tired and worn out, it'll do us no good to fight Zell. Plus, we need to come up with a strategy to beat him." Yami explained.

"Marie doesn't have much time left Yami! We need to continue on!" Illidan argued back.

Grunting, Set interjected "Quit acting like a child. We'll save Marie, but we need rest first. I highly doubt even you could win a battle when you're exhausted. Surely the nomads taught you better than that."

"Do not tempt me right now Set." Illidan warned with a growl.

"Silence!" yelled Yami.

The three quieted, with Yami finally saying "We'll rest for two hours. That should give us enough time to recoup for the battle. Also, when we wake up, we'll decide a battle strategy."

"Feh…" Illidan replied as he walked over to a corner of the cave and sank to the ground.

Grunting once more, Set walked over to his own corner and sat down. Sighing, Yami picked a place out and sat down as well.

Yami sat still for a few moments, thinking he'd never fall asleep, but sleep soon fell over him. Set eventually nodded off after ten minutes. Illidan though, sat wide awake.

Sitting in his spot, Illidan's thoughts turned to Marie. "_I hope she's alright…_"

Sighing, he silently said to himself "_I know she'll be fine. I promised to save her, and I will._"

Without even realizing it, his eyelids began to droop heavily. Within another few minutes, sleep overcame him.

Illidan awoke soon enough nearly an hour and half later from a nightmare. Visions of his past raced through his mind over the last moments he had been with his father.

Trying to clear his mind, he closed his eyes, only to find the nightmare still there even when he was awake. There he saw his father's broken and bleeding body, burned from the scorching attack by the flaming monster. Squall had soon blasted the monster apart with his own creature, but Illidan had lost all interest in the fight. Just seeing his father like that had shaken him to the core.

Squall had worked with Illidan for years to rid him of these nightmares that filled him with so much pain, and had succeeded, so they thought. The memories were still fresh, but not as painful. Illidan had not had a nightmare about that night for nearly seven, going on eight, years now.

"Why now?" he softly questioned to himself while opening his eyes.

Let out a long exhale, Illidan closed his eyes once again. He saw the nightmare once more, but now things were different. Instead of his fallen father in front of him, there laid Marie, seemingly barely breathing. Looking up, instead of seeing Squall and the others approaching, there was Zell, laughing manically.

"_You should have done what I asked Illidan. Now she is dead thanks to you, just like your father!_" Zell said as he burst out loud laughing manically.

Illidan's eyes immediately opened wide. He wanted to scream in pain from the nightmare, but didn't dare. Taking deep breaths, he tried hard to reign in his emotions.

"_I'll be no good to anyone if I don't get my focus back._" he scolded himself.

Finally, after a few minutes, Illidan managed to calm his emotions. Letting out a loud sigh, Illidan leaned back against the wall and waited for the others to awaken.

Nearly fifteen minutes later, both Set and Yami began to stir. Opening his eyes, Illidan saw the pair slowly rise up and stretch back out.

"Are you two rested up enough?" Yami asked with a yawn.

Smirking, Illidan replied "As good as I'll get for now."

"I'll survive." Set remarked.

Both Illidan and Yami lightly chuckled at Set's comment, earning each a glare from Set. Silence soon fell upon the group till Yami finally made a move.

"We need to discuss a strategy." Yami finally announced.

Nodding, Illidan replied "Right. What do you have in mind?"

Thinking for a moment, Yami asked "You know the layout of the cave, so you have an idea where Marie might be, right?"

"Yeah, I have an idea of where Zell is holding her. It's probably in the very back of the cave. There was a chamber in the back that is large enough for at most three people to comfortably sleep. I'd guess Zell has her in there, since she needs to lay still. Plus, it's in the very back, tucked away from the main room of the cave."

Yami began pondering on those words, giving Set a chance to ask "How shall we handle this battle?"

Immediately answering, Yami said "One of us needs to get to Marie, and fast. The time is nearly up, and I imagine that her body is nearly fully paralyzed. She may not be able to handle the stress, so it's imperative that we get to her quickly."

"Agreed. She hopefully is still alright, but the sooner we get to her, the better." Illidan added.

"The question is who goes?" Set asked.

Looking to Illidan, Yami said "Illidan, you know your way around that cave far better than either of us. I think it'd be better if you went to Marie while we fight Zell."

Quickly shaking his head, Illidan replied "No, that's not a good idea! I have no idea how strong Zell is right now, so there is no guarantee that the two of you can hold him that long, let alone survive."

"You give us far little credit Illidan. Together, me and the Pharaoh will be more than enough of a match for Zell." Set boldly stated.

"Set is right Illidan. The two of us working together should be able to take on Zell." Yami affirmed.

"But…" Illidan began.

Interrupting, Set replied "But nothing! Marie needs that cure, and your job is to give it to her immediately. Besides, she is your student and you swore to protect her."

Looking to Yami for help, Illidan saw in his face that he had made up his mind. Sighing, Illidan said in defeat "Very well, I'll take the cure to Marie. You two be careful though. Zell is unstable. I doubt he'll listen to reason, so be on guard."

Both nodded in reply to Illidan, and Yami then said "Let's go save Marie and put an end to this pointless battle with Zell!"

Illidan and Set both replied "Right!" and followed Yami as he led them out of the cave. The three quickly mounted their horses and began riding off in the direction of the cave once more.

Riding along, Illidan silently said "_We're coming Marie. Just hang on a little longer._"

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Nearly an hour passed as the group finally arrived at the front of the designated cave. The outside of the cave had a few recent tracks going in and out of the cave, confirming that someone was within it.

The three slowly ventured in, each with their guard up. Torches covered the walls of the cave, illuminating it, making it easier to see. Following Illidan, Yami and Set continued to glance around, checking for any signs of Zell.

In the middle of the cave, the three found a large chamber, with Zell standing in the middle of it. He evilly smirked at the sight of the three and began to laugh manically.

"So good of you to come Pharaoh Yami. And I see my faithful servant even brought the High Priest Set along. Very nice work Illidan, my loyal servant." Zell boasted.

"I'm not your servant Zell." Illidan coldly stated. "Where is Marie?"

Chuckling darkly, Zell replied "She's safe. Once I dispose of these two, you shall have the cure."

Nodding to Illidan, Yami said "Go, we'll take care of this."

"Be careful." Illidan warned.

"We will. Now, go!" Yami called out.

Upon those words, Illidan summoned up a burst of his Shadow Powers. Using them on the soles of his feet, he increased his speed to inhuman and ran towards the cavern he figured held Marie.

Seeing this, Zell moved intercept, but Yami and Set were on him before he could attack. Wagging a finger at him, Set arrogantly said "Now, now, your fight is with me and the Pharaoh, not Illidan."

Growling at the pair, Zell backed away. Smirking evilly, Zell calmly stated "Very well, I'll just have to execute the two of you first."

"We'll see about who executes who." Yami stated. "I spared your life once, but I see now it was a mistake. I will not spare it again!"

Laughing evilly, Zell replied "I will avenge Shando's death and finish what I began eight years ago. You will fall on this day Pharaoh, son of Raijin."

"Enough talk!" Set interjected with his Shadow Powers instantly flaring up.

"Don't you shush me boy!" Zell growled out, calling up his own Shadow Powers.

Yami responded with a rise of his own powers and looked over at Set. Nodding at Yami, Set called out "Come forth my Vorse Raider!"

An olive ogre like creature with black and blue leather clothing with a large lance appeared in front of Set. The creature let out a small grunt, seemingly ready for battle.

"Dark Magician Girl, come lend me a hand." Yami called out.

A blonde haired young woman with blue eyes, a revealing blue and pink mage's outfit, and a small golden staff formed in front of Yami.

Chuckling darkly, Zell said "Summoning two mediocre monsters against me is a pure insult. Now the two of you shall experience true fear! I summon you, almighty Five God Dragon!"

The ground instantly began shaking drastically as a large, powerful dragon with five very different heads appeared behind Zell. It had pale yellow skin with some brown spots on it from it's chest down, and it's large wings were the same colors. The heads were each very different. The first on the left was a head made of brown earth like material, with the second seemingly formed form electricity. The middle one had a head of flames, with the one beside it made up of darkness. Finally, the last head was made up of water. Each head roared loudly, making the cave shake greatly, along with the two weaker monsters.

Knowing this creature had great strength, Set looked at Yami, who was somewhat shocked at the strength of the creature as well. "Yami, what now?" he asked, seemingly unsure of what to do.

Gathering his composure, Yami called out "Dark Magician Girl, blast that dragon with Burning Magic Attack!"

Following Yami's lead, Set turned to his monster, saying "Vorse Raider, attack with Axe Slash!"

Both monsters leapt into action with the female mage first firing a sphere of black energy at the dragon. The ogre followed up by throwing his large lance directly at the dragon as well.

"Fools, your creatures stand no chance! Five God Dragon, use your Elemental Burst to show them true power at work!" ordered Zell.

The five heads of the dragon roared loudly as each formed a sphere of energy within their mouths. A sphere of water, darkness, fire, lightning, and earth were each released at the oncoming attacks. The five spheres easily tore threw the attacks and continued on towards the two stunned monsters. The blasts made contact immediately, completely obliterating the two creatures and making both Yami and Set scream out in pain as they each fell to one knee, lightly panting.

Growling in frustration, Set stood, yelling "I'm far from done! Blue-Eyes White Dragons, I summon the three of you!"

Three powerful white metallic dragons with sharp fangs, claws, and strong wings appeared around Set. Each dragon roared loudly, showing they were a power to reckon with.

"Set, you're using up too much energy!" Yami warned.

"Pharaoh, we must put out a true force that can take down Zell, so I suggest we throw what we have at him! No more holding back!" Set argued back.

Chuckling instantly disrupted the two's fight, with Zell saying "It doesn't matter what you try, you cannot escape the fact you're doomed to lose to me!"

Knowing Set was right, Yami called out "Dark Magician, rise up to help defeat this evil!"

A mage in purple robes with a long green scepter made his presence known beside of Yami.

"This should be interesting." Zell said with a smirk.


	42. Chapter 42: Memories, Pt 4

**Hello everyone! Well, this weekend has been interesting… Friday, I saw grandpa, and he was doing alright. My mom and sister were in from VA to visit, but unfortunately, grandpa slept a lot, lol. He only woke up a few times, like very little, while I visited. My sister told me he had stood up on his own for 30 seconds the day before, which was excellent! That's what he needs to go home and have the doctor come to him instead. I stopped in after I had dinner with my grandma, mom, sister, and my sister's boyfriend to check up on him. He was mostly asleep, but woke up to see me. I noted while in the room, his bed was pulled out away from the wall, but dismissed it that the nurses were going to move it back. Unfortunately, he fell out of bed that night on the side that I had dismissed. He was taken to the hospital and x-rayed, but had no broken bones. Also, they found he had ammonia. He's still there, but should get out in the near future. Lol, I called my mom at the hospital last night, and talked with him for a moment. He humorously asked why I wasn't there, which I couldn't help but laugh at it. I'm to go tonight and see him, so it'll be good. Other than that, it was a rather normal weekend. Nothing else happened.**

**Ok, story update. Currently, I really don't have much motivation to work on the sequel to this story, but don't worry, I will work on it eventually. Actually, I have had thoughts of maybe doing something different, but I don't know. I'll let you all know for sure. As for **_**Another**_**, it is going well. So far, I've got about 2 chapters on it done, and am really happy with it so far. Also, I plan on doing a few one-shots, but that'll be done eventually.**

**Last time, the cure for Marie's poison was found by the bookworm Shadi, who gave it to Illidan. A plan was formed and Illidan was voted to save Marie while Yami and Set battle Zell. So far, the pair haven't fared well against Zell, but now they have begun to take the battle more seriously. Can the pair win against an impossible force? And will Illidan make it in time to save Marie?**

**Wow, I'm surprised no one guessed the answer to my question from last time. No one knows where Zell came from? Hmm, I guess I'll ask once more, and then give hints.**

**From what anime, game, etc, did Zell come from? Guess right and I shall post another chapter as soon as I can, if not tomorrow.**

**Alright, time to do the best part of the morning! Review time!**

**ardee: Yeah, he summoned Five God Dragon right off the bat. Very true, he's powerful now. As for in the future, that's to be decided, lol. Nah, she can't seem to say out of trouble ever, lol. It would be interesting to see the Gods and Beasts battle, but you never know, they may never. Hmm, I don't know if it's ever been done or not myself. Then again, I don't read up on other Yugioh GX fics either, lol. As for how the movie fits in, eh, I'm not entirely sure. I kind of said it happened, but not quite either. I just sort of used it, but never fully integrated it into the storyline. Thanks for the comments.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Thanks, and it may have been a tiny bit rushed. Yeah, it was kind of like the Big 5 right after Duelist Kingdom, lol.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Thanks. Ryon, I'm not blowing you up. It's someone who likes to make clay creatures. (/Sees a giant fat clay statue fall in front of Ryon. Runs away and takes cover. Watches massive explosion.\) Uh… Ryon, you still with us?**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. I think that they had a R.L. Stine marathon on Goosebumps this weekend is why there was no new episode. Myself, I could careless about Goosebumps, besides, this is Cartoon Network. Note the name says CARTOON! (/Sighs\) I think they should stick with cartoons/anime, not cross over to real life stuff. I'm not sure if they're done with GX or not. I thought they were once before, but then I found out it had moved to mornings on Saturday instead, which sucked due that I missed Viper's duel. Luckily, I found it online, but still…**

**Knives91: Lol, yeah, things don't look good. Thanks for the comments.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Yeah, Zell seems to like the 4k attack point monsters. Eh, as for special tricks, nah, I didn't really throw anything in for it. True, Marie gets into bad situations quite often, in which my mate constantly reminds me, lol. She has vowed to write a story where Marie is the hero and Illidan is the damsel, but I've yet to see her begin it, lol. I know that was cruel, but truthful. Yeah, it's interesting to see how Yami, Set, and Illidan will fare against Zell. Very true, those ominous carvings give off a bad vive, hehe. Thanks for the comments.**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Yep, one powerful Fusion monster has come out, but will it destroy Yami and Set? That is yet to be seen.**

**Thank you everyone for your reviews. I appreciate each of them. If anyone guesses the answer to my above question, I'll try to post the new chapter immediately, if not tomorrow. Again, the question is as follows:**

**From what anime, game, etc, did Zell come from?**

**Till next time, I hope you all enjoy this chapter. Later!**

**Chapter 42**

Using his Shadow Powers to increase his speed, Illidan hurtled through the cave till he finally came across a group of caverns in the back of it. Glancing around, Illidan picked the one he remembered and rushed into it.

Coming out of the corridor, he found a small cavern that he was rather familiar with. Seeing Marie laying on a large flat rock, he quickly rushed to her side.

"Marie!" he exclaimed as he made it to her side.

Checking her vital signs, he softly smiled, saying "Still alive. That's good."

Seeing her eyes were open and looking at him, he softly smiled. In a low murmur, he swore he heard her say "You're back."

Softly smiling at her again, he gently said "Try to stay calm. I brought the antidote."

Pulling the vial out of his cloak, he gently put his arm under Marie's head. As carefully as possible, he raised her body up so she could drink the vial.

Using his other hand, he snapped the stopper off of the vial. In a serious tone, Illidan said "Now, this stuff may taste awful, but it should neutralize the poison, so try and drink it all."

In a very low whisper, he heard Marie murmur "Ok…"

Gently tilting her head back and opening her mouth, Illidan brought the vial that held the antidote up to her mouth and slowly poured in the cure. After a moment, she finally swallowed with great difficulty.

She softly smiled at him, and in a low voice said "Thank you…"

That said, she slumped over from exhaustion. Checking her vitals, Illidan let out a sigh of relief. "_She's fine. She must be exhausted._" he silently said to himself.

Gently, he scooped her up into her arms and began to walk out of the cavern. Glancing back, Illidan noted that there was another cavern, seemingly excavated. Curiosity filled him over the cavern, but knowing he had a duty to fulfill first, Illidan continued on towards the outside with a limp Marie in his arms.

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"Blue Eyes, attack with White Lightning!" yelled Set.

"Dark Magician, show him your Dark Magic Attack!" ordered Yami.

The three white dragons roared loudly as each formed a burst of white energy in their jaws. Simultaneously, the three released a stream of white energy straight at the large five headed dragon.

Joining his comrades, the purple robed mage sent out a blast of black magical energy straight for five headed dragon, hoping to cause some kind of damage.

The combined blasts struck the five headed creature head on, causing a large explosion to rock the cave, sending some debris scattering and a large plume of smoke to envelop the area near the dragon.

"Did we get him?" Yami asked.

Laughter suddenly cut through the air as Zell replied "Allow me to answer for you. Attack with Element Burst!"

Several loud roars were heard as suddenly five spheres came pouring out of the smoke. Hastily, Set moved his three dragons, but the purple robed mage wasn't as lucky. He was struck head on by the water sphere, causing the mage to scream out in pain as his body was destroyed, causing Yami to simultaneously fall to one knee and double over in pain.

"Yami!" Set called with concern. He quickly rushed to his friend, making sure he was alright.

Softly growling as he stood, Yami said "I'll be fine, for now. How are we going to beat that thing?"

"Maybe if you summoned the Egyptian Gods…" Set began.

Shaking his head, Yami interrupted with "No, I can't. I used up too much energy, plus they are still difficult for me to control. We'll have to find another way."

Through the remaining smoke, the pair noticed Illidan running towards the outside. In his arms, they saw an unconscious Marie. Slyly smiling at Set, Yami whispered "He did it."

Turning their full attention to the task before them, Yami smirked. "Set, I have an idea. We're going to have to combine our powers though."

Raising an eyebrow, Set asked "What do you have in mind?"

"Merge your monsters, and I'll bring forth another monster. We'll then meld them together. That creature should be enough to win this battle. Of course, it will drain us completely too, but if this does the trick, we'll win the battle."'

"And if not, we'll be sitting ducks. Well, there aren't many choices." Set wryly said.

"Come now, you two can't be finished already! I've yet to have my fun!" yelled Zell.

With the meeting of the two breaking up, Set called out "Blue-Eyes White Dragons, merge together now to form the Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon!"

Focusing all of his power on his three dragons, Set began sending out even more Shadow Magic than he thought possible. Each roared loudly and began glowing. The glowing soon became extremely bright to the point no one could see what was going on. As the glow died, a large three headed white metallic looking dragon appeared in the place of the three dragons. The three massive heads roared loudly, sending shockwaves through the cave.

Laughing manically, Zell said "All that effort wasted for nothing."

Set, who had sank to one knee, panted hard, but finally said "You'll see."

In the meantime, Yami called out "I summon you mighty Black Luster Soldier!"

Releasing more of his Shadow Magic, Yami began the summoning of a powerful knight creature. Slowly, it began forming. It had dark black armor that seemed to glow due to the torches light. He held a might sword and a shield, one in each hand. Fully appearing, he let out a loud war cry, showing he was unafraid of the large dragon.

Yami was lightly panting, for summoning the creature had used up a bit of his energy, but not all of it. Nodding to Set, who was panting heavily, he said "Let's do this."

Slowly, Set rose, and together, both Yami and Set said "Together, we combine our creatures to form Master of Dragon Knight!"

Pushing out a great deal of his energy in order to compensate for Set's lack of power, Yami began merging the two creatures. Set joined in soon enough, adding his power to Yami's for their creature. The two monsters soon began to glow with a blinding light. Within moments, no one could see the two monsters. Finally, the light dimmed, with only one monster left on the field. The soldier could be seen on the back of the dragon, holding his sword still and a set of chains. The three headed dragon now had reigns, which were made of chain and went to the soldier. The dragon roared loudly, causing it to begin to swell with even more power.

"NOT POSSIBLE!" Zell exclaimed in shock.

Both Set and Yami were barely standing, and were panting heavily. In a ragged breath, Yami said "It is possible."

In unison, Set and Yami called out "Master of Dragon Knight, attack with Dragon Saber Blast!"

The powerful soldier's sword began to swell with white twisting energy as the three dragon heads filled with white energy as well. The three heads released a stream of powerful white energy in combination with the knight, who released a burst of energy from his sword. The four streams intertwined together, forming a strong blast.

Pushing back his shock, Zell yelled "Show those fools how strong I truly am! Destroy that dragon with Element Burst!"

Roaring in correspondence to it's master, the powerful dragon released a burst of energy from each head. The five streams met the together and formed into one blast, which headed straight for the soldier and dragon's attack.

The blasts met near the middle of the cavern, sending out massive shockwaves. Sparks were flying as the blasts grinded on one another, with neither wanting to give up yet.

Seeing the blasts seemed even, Zell began pouring all his power into the attack. At the same time, Yami and Set did the same, causing the grinding blasts to grow even larger. Neither side seemed to have the upper hand for what seemed like eternity when it was actually only a few minutes.

At the last moment, Yami cried out "I will not allow you to harm the people that are precious to me anymore!"

With that outburst, Yami sent even more power pouring into the blast. The blast grew stronger, forcing the opposing blast to slowly start to backslide. Zell was shocked at this, but had no way to slow down the blast.

"I have to stop it!" he growled out.

He pushed harder and harder, till finally realization set in. "I can't stop it!"

The blast finally pushed back further and plowed into the large five headed dragon, making it scream out in pain. In correlation, Zell cried out in pain as he sank to his knees. A large explosion ensured, throwing Zell against a nearby wall.

The explosion rocked the entire cave, and finally, the cave could take no more abuse. Rocks at the top of the cave began coming loose, causing a massive chain reaction.

Once the blast had ended, Yami and Set fell to the ground, with Set immediately passing out. Before passing out, Yami sent the large creature back to it's realm, silently thanking it for it's help.

Some of the rocks began to fall from the ceiling towards Yami and Set, who remained immobile. With very little room left, a barrier suddenly appeared around the two, saving them from being crushed.

Rushing to his two fallen friends, Illidan checked them and softly smiled. "Good, you're both alive."

Gently picking each up and placing them over his shoulder, Illidan began to leave when he noticed Zell moving. "Zell, come on!" he cried out.

Zell only ignored him and attempted to stand. He failed miserably, and fell back down.

"Come on Zell! It's over! Just let it go!" Illidan called out once more.

Glaring at Illidan, Zell replied "It will never be over Illidan! Not till I have finished what Shando began!"

Illidan was about to reply when he saw a large set of boulders coming down towards Zell's body. "ZELL!" he screamed.

Zell paid no head, and thus the boulders crushed him. Illidan only let out a ragged sigh at this display. Knowing his own barrier couldn't take much more of a beating, he let it down and began running out of the cave with both his friends on his shoulders.

Reaching the outside, Illidan laid Yami and Set gently onto the ground and looked back at the cave. He watched as the entrance collapsed and shook his head sadly.

"Did we do it?" he heard Yami softly ask in a mere whisper.

"Yeah, you beat him." Illidan replied with sadness in his voice.

Deciding to take the others out to the cave they had stayed at the day before, Illidan slowly loaded Yami and Set onto their horses, while placing Marie onto Stormy. Taking the reigns to all three, he slowly led the horses in the direction of the cave.

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Looking up at Zell, Illidan said "I watched you die that day. You shouldn't be alive, at all."

Chuckling evilly as the wind blew his hair to the side, Zell replied "You're wrong. I didn't die in that cave. In fact, that boulder you saw crashing down on me never landed on me."

"That's not possible. Even if I would have had trouble holding a barrier up under that kind of strain, so I know for a fact you alone weren't strong enough." Illidan countered with his brow furrowed.

Smirking evilly, Zell replied "Very true Illidan, but let me ask you something. Did you ever ponder how I got as strong as I was?"

Pondering for a moment, Illidan quickly came to a conclusion. "No, I never did think about it. I had assumed that you had trained non-stop for eight years like I did."

Darkly chuckling, Zell said "You're semi-right. When Yami banished me, I wondered the desert for a few years till I finally went to the cave where me, you, and Shando had camped at from time to time. While in the back where we slept, I found a small fissure where it seemed another chamber was. I dug out a hole for three long months."

"Once I had finally made a hole large enough to go through, I entered the room. In the room were four stone slab carvings. Three of the four depicted monsters which I had not seen before, but yet they looked familiar. They resembled the Egyptian Gods in many ways."

Gasping, Illidan lowly whispered "The Sacred Beasts…"

"Exactly!" Zell said when he saw Illidan's reaction. "They were there, slumbering within the small room. And then there was the fourth stone carving. This slab had a person on it. When I touched it, it immediately reacted. A person had been sealed within it fifteen hundred years prior to that time."

"You mean the person was sealed away fifteen hundred years prior to our past lives?!" Illidan asked in some shock.

Nodding, Zell continued with "The reaction gave me access to the person. This person spoke to me, telling me how he had been placed within stone. Like me, he had been betrayed by the ones that were said to care for him, and by his own pharaoh! Seeing how we were similar, this person granted me a portion of his powers. With his new found powers added to my own, I began training and readying myself to return to Cairo to one day strike Yami down. I waited patiently, knowing you would return as well."

"Why wait for me? What was so important that you had to wait for me?" Illidan asked as the wind tossed his hair around.

Sneering, Zell replied "I needed you to help me take revenge for Shando."

Shaking his head, Illidan said "Father never wanted to kill Yami. Raijin was the only target, not Yami."

"Yami could have been, and was, just as evil as his father! Look at what he did to those stable hands that attempted to rape that slave girl!"

"That was different. They attempted to commit a heinous act." Illidan calmly reminded, trying hard to ignore the comment he made of Marie.

Quirking an eyebrow, Zell asked "Is it really? Did those men deserve death!?"

With an even voice, Illidan responded with "It was not up to me to judge them, but up to the Pharaoh. You knew that back then like you know it now."

"It wasn't right, and you knew it! Yet you allowed it!"

"Again, I'm not the executioner. That was Yami's choice alone, not mine." Illidan replied, his voice nearing irritation.

"Claim that it was right, but you know in your heart it wasn't!" Zell yelled, seemingly frustrated.

Calming down, a smirk reappeared on his face, as he said "It does not matter. The point is, I needed you to help, but you stubbornly refused me. As you saw, I took matters into my own hands."

"And failed." Illidan added with a boast.

Frowning, Zell replied "And failed, but I survived. I'm sure you're curious how, now aren't you?"

"Maybe." Illidan replied with a bit of agreement in his tone.

"Perhaps I should show you then. Behold what happened!" screamed out Zell.

Illidan suddenly felt dizzy as a vision began forming around him. Looking around, he slightly gasped at where he was.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

A large set of boulders were falling straight at Zell, who could not move. He had exhausted almost all of his strength in summoning the Five God Dragon and was now nearly helpless.

To the past Illidan, the boulder had appeared to crush Zell, but in truth, a barrier was raised with only a few inches to spare. Zell had used all his strength to summon a new barrier in order to keep from being flattened. His strength soon faltered and he lost consciousness.

A few hours later, Zell awoke to find a barrier still surrounding him. "How is it possible?" he said aloud.

An image of a man in white robes with golden eyes and blue hair appeared before him. "Master!" he cried out. "Did you save me?"

Nodding, the man said "_I did my faithful servant._"

"Thank you Master! Now I can continue my pursuit of …"

Shaking his head, the man interrupted with "_No, you will not continue to pursue the Pharaoh._"

In shock, Zell roughly shook his head, saying "But Master, that is what I want! That is what you gave me strength for!"

"_Your chance to finish the Pharaoh is over. You will never see him again, or have a chance to finish him._" the man stated.

"Master, why!? I thought that was why you gave me the strength!" Zell whined.

Nodding, the man replied "_True, I gave you the strength to defeat the Pharaoh, but that time is over._"

Bowing his head in shame, Zell asked "What will become of me then my Master?"

Smirking, the man said "_You shall inherit all of my power._"

Looking up in shock, Zell asked "You mean you are passing your power onto me?"

"_Yes. It will take some time though. Are you willing to wait?_"

Nodding quickly, Zell replied "But of course Master. I will do whatever you ask of me. I would wait all eternity to receive your power!"

Once more smirking, the man said "_Very well. I shall pass my power onto you. It will take some time though. You will sleep till then. We will one day wake up, and then the two of us shall bring order to the chaos!_"

"Yes Master." Zell replied with a grin.

"_Rest now my servant. I shall raise another barrier to filter out the air. While you sleep, I shall begin the transfer. Soon, our power shall be one._"

Laying his head down, Zell nodded, saying "Yes Master. I look forward to it."

That said, Zell fell into a deep sleep as the man smirked evilly. He began to weave a spell using his Shadow Powers. The spell slowly began to sap his energy, sending it into Zell's body.

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Five millennia later, the spell finally finished. Awakening, Zell stretched out. Opening his eyes, he noted that the chamber was still full of rocks, and the barrier was still up.

"_It is finished._" a voice said to Zell.

Looking around, Zell saw nothing, but pondered who said it. Instantly, he asked out loud "Master, is that you?"

"_Yes Zell, it is me. The spell is complete. My power is now your power. We are now one._"

"I see. Thank you my Master." Zell curtly replied.

"_Much time has passed Zell. We no longer live in the days of Egypt's power. We are now in a new world. We must explore it._"

"Yes my Master."

Standing up, Zell realized that his barrier was adjusting to his movements. The boulders had moved accordingly, making him grin evilly. Walking along towards the chamber that had been the back chamber where he had held the slave girl, he entered it, finding it had been cleaned up once more. Glancing at the carvings, he noticed the one that stored his master no longer had an image on it.

Looking at the other three carvings, Zell felt his master say "_Sacred Beasts, awaken to my call!_"

There was no stirring within the carvings, making Zell frown. "Why do they feel so different?" he asked aloud.

Noting that the room had been cleaned up, Zell looked towards one wall and saw a hole had been cut into the room. "Someone has disturbed this chamber."

"_Hmm, someone has taken the souls of the Sacred Beasts. Interesting... Whatever fool that has done so will pay with their life though. A curse had been laid on them when they were laid to rest._"

"I see Master. Shall we search them out?" Zell asked.

After a moment of pondering, the voice called back "_Not yet. We must find what has changed in this world. We shall explore first before we take action._"

"Very well my Master."

Walking out of the cave, Zell saw that a city wasn't far from where they were. Moving towards it with a curious mind, Zell pondered how much the world had really changed.

Once in the city, Zell had come up to a glass window and saw his reflection, which disturbed him. "Why do I look so different?"

"_Your body underwent some changes when absorbing my power. Not only did your looks change somewhat, but you now have more strength, speed, and agility. You are reborn my servant._"

"I see."

Examining himself, Zell noted his hair was now blue with a mixture of blonde. It no longer stuck up like it had once, but laid flat, but the length only came to his mid-neck. His eyes were the same, as was the black tattoo. His body was somewhat more muscular, and he felt stronger.

"I could get used to this." he said with satisfaction beaming from his eyes.


	43. Chapter 43: Reason to Fight For

**Hey everybody! "Hey Doctor Nick!" Lol, silly me, too many good Simpsons episodes in my head. So, last night I went and saw my grandfather. He had a temperature when I arrived, and was talking about 20 men coming in with guns to get us, and about tanks… Me and my grandma believe the fever had him a bit delusional and possibly he was dreaming. About 7, after my grandma went home to check on her dog, he woke up and was much better. He had cooled off, and I asked him how he felt. He said better, that he wasn't as hot, which I was thankful for. Unfortunately, his temp did go back up that night, but my grandmother said it was like in a cycle, that when the meds wore off, it went back up usually. Other than that, he seemed normal.**

**Story wise, nothing new on the sequel. Heh, I just can't seem to get into it since I started my other story, **_**Another**_**. I'm trying though, plus doing some research on the when the story takes place. So, we'll see. Lol, plus I've yet to name this final sequel, which isn't something unusual. Heh, I didn't name this story till after I had 10 or 15 chapters. Same with **_**TWS**_**, although **_**ToP**_** always had it's name.**

**Hurray! Someone guessed the correct answer on where Zell came from! X-knight20, you was close, as was pink-kiss-candy, but since both of you had the general area, I'm awarding this chapter in both your names. Zell, or as pink-kiss-candy guessed, Zell Dincht, came from Final Fantasy VIII. I'm sure if any of you have guessed yet, another character, the one who taught Illidan, came from the same game. Hey, there could be another question! So, here it is.**

**Who are the other Final Fantasy VIII characters I've used within my stories? Here is a hint. There are only 2 others, and they are a couple and married in my fan fic. Also, they are a significant role in Illidan's past. Anyone who can list both will be rewarded by me posting an extra chapter in their honor on Thursday.**

**Last time, Yami and Set defeated Zell by teaming up. Zell was thought to have been dead, but revealed he survived thanks to his Master. Who is this mysterious Master, and what did Zell and him do for all those years after they awoke?**

**Alright, now that the question is up, time to get back to what I enjoy. That's right, answering reviews!**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Yep, Zell came back by simply sleeping for 5 millennia. Eh, not sure on Beowulf yet. I've only seen a few previews, but not many. I read the book on him, but we'll see. You were close on where Zell came from. He came out of Final Fantasy VIII actually, not VI. Good guess though, and as I said, I gave you and pink-kiss-candy credit. Good job!**

**Knives91: Yep, lol. True, it's been heard of before, lol. Can Illidan stand against this guy, eh, good question.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Good guess! You were right, and got the full name, which shocked me and my mate when we read the review. So, like x-knight20, I give you credit and post the chapter in honor of both of you. Lol, poor Ryon. You have no hair now, and you're singed head to toe with black powder. (/Hears incoming clay birds and ducks behind a rock.\)**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Yep, that's what happened in the past. Yes, the Sacred Beasts play a role here, unlike the show's season 2. I'm not sure what season 4 will do actually either. Actually, I saw that the new episodes are beginning again on CN this weekend. Same time as before, at 11 in the morning. I wish they would put it back on evenings. They flew through the 1****st**** two seasons by doing that, but it can't be helped I suppose… It'd be nice if they got rid of one of the crappy shows on Toonami and put GX back, but they won't I figure. (/sighs\) But yeah, I saw Viper's duel online also, which was cool.**

**Isis the Sphinx: LOL! No, Zell didn't come from Zatch Bell. I miss that show though… It was just getting good when Toonami pulled the plug… Other than Naruto, I'm growing irritated with Toonami's lineup. Plus some of the shows have really begun to suck, like One Piece. I hate the new voices. It's like watching DBZ crossing over into it…But yes, the real plot is beginning. Eh, he may win… or not, lol. Thanks for the comments.**

**ardee: Heh, I figured someone might have seen Dragon Master Knight coming. It is kind of a horrible card. I mean, it takes a ritual monster and a fusion monster to create. That in itself is nearly impossible. I mean, you could fusion summon BEUD and then fuse BLS from your hand with it, but still, that would totally suck and be nearly impossible to pull off. True, it would have been more entertaining to see the Gods battle the Five God Dragon, but Yami wasn't as experienced with them then, and as he said, he had lost a bit too much energy to do it at that point. Gotta remember, when Illidan came back, he put the group through rigorous training while working with Marie also. In essence, he's the reason the others got so strong really. He worked with them till they were his level or better. But yes, Zell slept for 5 millennia. Whoever that master of his is was powerful. If I get a chance, I'll check out your story. Lol, I have so many stories to catch up on, and it's on my list to read. No prob, and thank you for your comments.**

**Wow, the reviews keep getting longer and longer, lol. That's not a bad thing btw before you all think it is. But those were some good ones.**

**Congrats again to pink-kiss-candy and x-knight20 for getting my question right. Like I said earlier, I have a new one, and if someone guesses it right, I'll post an extra chapter again this week. Here is the question and hint once more. You may have to go digging into **_**ToP **_**or **_**TWS**_** if your memories are rusty.**

**Who are the other Final Fantasy VIII characters I've used within my stories? Here is a hint. There are only 2 others, and they are a couple and married in my fan fic. Also, they are a significant role in Illidan's past. Anyone who can list both will be rewarded by me posting an extra chapter in their honor on Thursday.**

**Ok, that's it for me. Thanks for all the reviews everyone! I hope to keep seeing them. Till next time, enjoy!**

**Chapter 43**

After nearly seven years of wandering, Zell had finally found a lead on the Sacred Beasts. He learned from several underground sources that a man had found them and turned them into actual cards. The cards had then been buried on Duel Academy Island by a surprising person from Zell's past.

"I see that Illidan has been reincarnated. Ironic that our paths will once again cross." Zell mused to himself.

"_Fate is that way sometimes._" his Master added.

Thinking for a few moments, Zell finally said "Perhaps he was brought back to help me in fixing this world. To change chaos to order, as he should have back in ancient times."

"_Perhaps... For now though, we must begin setting things in motion. I believe there is an individual that can help us do that._"

"Who my Master?"

The spirit smirked, saying "_The superintendent of the school is a foolish old man that is desperate to regain his youth. We shall gather the Shadow Charms and hand them over to him. He will then prepare the way for us._"

Nodding, Zell replied "Yes my Master."

Over the course of the next year, Zell and his master collected the eight Shadow Charms, all except half of one. For some reason, it was broken into half, and the second half was sealed away within a realm that the pair could not enter. The spirit only shrugged it off, saying it didn't matter.

During the next year, Zell and his master had the superintendent find people whom they would be perfect for the job. Soon enough, seven people were chosen and given Shadow Charms. They were then told to wait till the following year to begin their attack.

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The vision finally ended, bringing Illidan back into reality. Shaking his head to clear it, Illidan sighed, seemingly understanding now what had happened.

"I believe you know how the rest of the story goes." Zell promptly said.

Nodding, Illidan replied "I get it now. The superintendent, he was nothing more than your puppet. But why trouble yourself with him? You could have easily gone after the cards yourself."

Smirking, Zell said "I could have, but I needed to draw you out."

Frowning, Illidan asked with frustration "Why me? What's so freaking important about me!?"

"You've always been the key, son of Shando. You will guarantee victory to me and my Master in the battle to end the chaos. We will reshape the world in to the way Shando had envisioned it. There will be no more crime, no more pain and suffering, nothing but peace!"

"Feh, you've lost it." Illidan replied sternly.

Growling, Zell said "You will join us this time Illidan. Help me fix this world. The evil in it will consume it if you don't. Do as your father wanted to! He wanted this world fixed, and to bring order to the chaos! And he wanted you to be a part of fixing it!"

Frustrated, Illidan yelled "My father never wanted that! True, he wanted to end Raijin's reign in order to end the senseless chaos, but he never wanted to conquer the world, let alone rule it! Father only wanted to bring an end to the killing that Raijin had done and wanted done. You can keep twisting his words around all you want, but it will not convince me either way!"

"YOU DARE TO DEFY YOUR FATHER'S WISHES AGAIN!?" Zell screamed in complete anger.

"I never once defied my father's wishes, but this twisted plan of yours is not his wish. He would never want me to destroy one order to bring in a twisted version of order. So, I decline, just as I did before."

Steeling his voice then, Illidan added "And if you dare to try and destroy the world, I will stop you. Like before, I will not standby idly and let you try."

Anger was covering Zell's face as his eyes for a moment flashed golden. They then returned to normal and he sighed, saying "I suppose then I'll have to destroy you. You leave me little choice. I had hopes of saving the son of Shando, but I see he wishes not to be saved. Your choice is made, and now you will deal with the consequences."

Taking a fighting stance, Illidan coldly replied "It is you that will deal with your own consequences, because I won't let this madness continue."

Moving to a fighting stance as well, Zell responded with "Very well. I gave you a chance, but now I will have to teach you a lesson in respect you insolent pup!"

Calmly moving into a left forward stance, Illidan assessed Zell's stance. He had taken up a simple fighting pose with his left foot pointing straight at Illidan and his right foot at a ninety degree angle behind him.

"_He's leaving himself somewhat open. He only has his left arm out, with his right arm tucked in behind him. Either Zell is foolishly challenging me to show him what I've got, or he's that unconcerned with what damage I can do._"

Waiting for Zell to make his first move, Illidan slowly became impatient. Frowning, he realized soon enough Zell wasn't going to attack. Illidan waited for Zell to make a move, but he didn't. "_Well, seems he won't make the first move. As Squall always said, nothing ventured, nothing gained._"

Widening his stance, Illidan placed more weight onto his left leg. Without warning, he launched himself forward, fists pulled to a ready position. Reaching Zell, he threw a fist at Zell's face, but Zell easily stepped backwards to dodge. Not wanting to lose his momentum, Illidan spun around and threw yet another punch, hoping to catch Zell off balance, but once again, Zell backed away.

Quickly moving forward with his momentum, Illidan attempted a round house kick, but again, Zell moved away, easily evading Illidan. Growing irritated, Illidan quickly planted his leg and spun the opposite way, throwing yet another kick at Zell, only to miss once more.

Backing away a bit himself, Illidan lightly growled. "_He's way faster than he used to be. When I was a kid, I could keep up with him, but now, he seems so much faster. Is it due to this spirit he talks about?_"

Without warning, Zell suddenly charged Illidan, making him jump on guard instantly. He came in swinging wildly with his fists, making Illidan desperately block the barrage, but he quickly found he couldn't block all the punches. Zell landed several gut punches before landing a punch on Illidan's face, busting his lip.

Moving away quickly, Illidan came to a sliding halt and reached up to feel the blood dripping from his lip. Using his wrist to wipe it off, he smirked lightly.

"I see you've gotten even stronger than before Zell." he admittedly said.

Smirking, Zell replied "You have no idea. Just surrender Illidan, like the good boy you should be."

Lightly chuckling, Illidan shook his head, saying "Not happening."

"So, you're a glutton for more punishment? Well, that can be arranged."

"We'll see." Illidan boldly replied.

Closing his eyes for a moment, Illidan slowly began to concentrate on his Shadow Powers. Feeling them stirring, he began to push the power throughout his body, making it spread through all of his muscles.

Lightly smiling in his mind at the memory of the day he learned it, he indulged in the moment of the memory.

Before him stood a man with brown neck length straight hair. His bangs hung in his face, but it didn't seem to bother him. He had piercing blue eyes that seemed cold as ice, but held warmth often in them. The most noticeable thing about the man was the scar that ran from his forehead to the left side of his nose. He had received this scar in battle when he was younger while defending his beloved wife.

"_Alright Illidan, this technique I'm going to teach you, it's rather handy. By the way, it is known as Hidden Inner Flame due that it supposedly kindles your inner fighting flame. Anyways, it will allow you to use your Shadow Powers as a booster for your own strength and speed. As you can surmise, this will greatly help you in a battle against a faster or stronger opponent._"

The pair trained for a month on the technique till Illidan had finally managed to master it. In the end, using the technique helped make his strength and speed double when compared to his normal strength and speed. Over time, as Illidan had continued to train, his strength and speed while using this technique increased even more, just like his normal speed and strength.

"_Of course, there is one downside to this technique._" Squall had added after telling him the advantages. "_It slowly drains your Shadow Powers, plus if you push yourself too much, your body may give out. Always be cautious when using this technique. Using it too often or too much could permanently damage your body._"

"_Right._" a younger Illidan had cheerfully replied.

Illidan had kept to what Squall told him about the disadvantage of the technique. He rarely used it due that he had been strong enough on his own to not need it. When Gozaburo had gone off the deep end, Illidan had wanted to use the Hidden Inner Flame, but due that Gozaburo had kept him moving, he never had time to use it. Not to mention, it wouldn't have helped too much anyways.

Shaking himself free of the memories, Illidan noted that his body was now full powered with the Hidden Inner Flame. Feeling the power coursing through his veins, he opened his eyes to stare at Zell.

Moving lightning quick, Illidan landed a powerful punch to Zell's jaw line, causing him to jump back in surprise. Not wanting to let Zell recoup, Illidan pressed the attack, quickly landing in several punches to Zell's body, and a few kicks as well. With one last roundhouse kick, Illidan knocked Zell away and sent him flying to the ground.

Rolling away, Zell reached up to his mouth to feel a small trickle of blood coming down his lip. Grinning evilly, he said "Impressive Illidan. I didn't know you knew the Hidden Inner Flame technique. Perhaps I haven't given you enough credit."

Smirking, Illidan replied "Don't flatter yourself. You of all people should know I was trained by Squall and the nomads. They were far stronger than any person who resided within Cairo that had Shadow Powers, and they taught me in their ways. Even though I was weaker, they pushed me beyond my original limits."

Chuckling, Zell lowered his hand from his mouth, saying "Maybe so, but what little they taught you pales in comparison to what I know."

Closing his eyes for a moment, Zell's body lightly glowed black, and within moments, the small bruises that had been forming and the cuts began to vanish from his face and body. Opening his eyes once more, he smirked evilly.

"_Not good! He managed to heal himself with so little effort. It takes me at least a few minutes to an hour or more to heal my body, but he did it in moments._"

Taking an attack stance, Zell boldly stated "You know Illidan, that technique is quite powerful. Perhaps I should show you the proper way to use it."

Without warning, Zell's body was instantly covered in a black aura. It vanished as fast as it appeared, and without any warning, Zell charged forward at Illidan.

"_No time to dodge. I'll just have to block him._" Illidan quickly realized with Zell coming in fast.

Raising his right arm to block, Illidan waited for the hit. In milliseconds, the hit came, followed by a snapping sound.

Screaming out in pain as he quickly backed away, Illidan felt his arm go limp. He grit his teeth with extreme pain shooting up and down his arm.

Looking at it, he simply realized the truth. "_He broke my arm! I didn't think he was that strong!_"

Chuckling evilly, Zell arrogantly asked "Does it hurt Illidan?"

Softly growling, Illidan rushed forward with his Hidden Inner Flame power rising. Throwing punches with his good arm, he flung volley after volley of flying punches, with a few kicks added, but never managed to score a hit. Zell only evaded him faster than previously, infuriating Illidan somewhat.

Without warning, Zell spun around and delivered a kick to Illidan right side. Illidan screamed out in pain once more as he felt his ribs give way. Backing away quickly, Illidan grabbed his ribs with his left hand, instantly knowing he had broken ribs.

A small trickle of his crimson life force began to flow down from the corner of Illidan's mouth as he spat out a small bit of it. "_I can't keep this up much longer._"

Taking advantage of Illidan's pain, Zell moved in and quickly delivered a shot to Illidan's left knee joint, making Illidan fall to the ground none to gracefully.

Laying on the ground, Illidan grabbed hold on his left leg with his good arm. He whimpered in pain as he examined it, immediately determining by the feel of it that his knee was officially shattered.

"_Is this how it ends?_" he pondered as he lay on the ground, writhing in pain.

"Leave him alone!" screamed out a voice, making Illidan look back up, only to find a sight he didn't want to see.

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Once Marie had led the students back to the medical center, she had quickly turned back, running at full speed. Illidan and her had exercised together for years, and he had even taught her a way to run even faster using her Shadow Powers.

As she ran, she never noticed a shadow following behind her. Scanning ahead with her Shadow Powers, she felt Illidan's flare up. Lightly smirking, she pondered if she would even be needed. Then it suddenly hit her. Another large power appeared, making Illidan's powers seem almost insignificant.

Increasing her speed, she ran faster than she thought possible. "_Please, be alive!_" she screamed in her mind.

Approaching the battle, she heard Illidan scream out in pain, making her blood boil at the thought of Illidan being hurt. Coming closer, she heard another painful scream, raising the temperature of her blood once more. "_He's hurt! Please, hang on Illidan for just a bit longer!_"

Seeing the battle up ahead, Marie watched with horror stricken eyes as she saw Illidan's leg crushed by the attacking man. Illidan immediately fell to the ground, screaming out in agony. Quickening her pace, Marie ran straight into the battle without any thought or worry of it.

Leaping onto the man's back, she placed a choke hold onto him, screaming "Leave him alone!"

"MARIE, GET OUT OF HERE NOW! RUN!" Illidan screamed, which immediately distracted her.

Feeling her distraction, the man grabbed hold of her arm and ripped her off his back. With ease, he quickly delivered a roundhouse kick to her, knocking away to the ground with a loud thump.

Seeing an unconscious Marie laying on the ground, Zell smirked, saying "Fool, you should mind your surroundings."

"MARIE!" Illidan screamed. When he saw no reaction, summoning up all this strength, Illidan pushed himself off the ground and stood once again.

Turning to Illidan, Zell gave a small gasp. He smirked slightly, saying "It's a surprise you're standing. I had guessed you were finished, but if you want more, I'm more than willing to award you it."

Pushing all pain to the back of his mind, Illidan hunched over with his left hand put into a claw shape. Summoning up all of his Shadow Powers, Illidan began to pour it all into an attack that Squall had taught him not long before his death.

Thinking back to it, Illidan remembered how serious Squall had been when he taught it to him. Squall had run his hand through his hair, and sternly said "_This technique is very powerful, but at the same time, very dangerous. It consumes a massive amount of your Shadow Magic, and will leave you a bit worn out afterwards. It is meant to be a finishing move, so be careful when you choose to use it. You will most likely kill whoever it is you face when you use this technique, so don't use it unless necessary._"

A younger Illidan nodded, causing Squall to begin explaining the technique. "_This technique, known as Shadow Blade, is extremely powerful. It transforms your arm into an invincible sword that can pierce almost anything. The power of it can even penetrate barriers. Of course, the technique requires a large amount of Shadow Magic. More than likely, you'll only be able to perform it once, if not twice a day. Currently, I can perform it five times a day, but it completely wears me out if I do that._"

Pausing for a moment, he finally added "_I recommend not using this technique unless it is absolutely necessary. It takes a minute to power up, plus it drains you._"

Softening a bit, Squall said "_I've used this a few times, but only when I was protecting someone precious to me. So, remember, this technique is meant to also protect those that you care for._"

Waking from his memory, Illidan silently recalled the last words Squall had told him. "_This technique, it was created to protect the ones I love, who I hold precious!_"

Focusing his power into the palm of his hand, Illidan let out a low growl as he pushed more and more of his Shadow Magic into his hand. Black bolts of power seemed to be forming around his hand, slightly giving off a buzzing noise. He silently activated the Hidden Inner Flame technique as well, knowing he would need all the power he could muster to beat Zell.

"_This may leave me drained, but I'm taking him down! I won't let him harm anyone else!_"

Watching Illidan with curious eyes, Zell lightly smirked. "_He'll never hurt me._" he silently thought.

"_Zell, do not let him hit you. That attack he is performing is far too dangerous. It could actually kill you._"

Frowning, Zell mentally replied "_He is too weak for that. Besides, with our immense power, he's nothing to us._"

"_Do not disobey me! That attack is known as the Shadow Blade, and is far too powerful for even us to block. Quick, stop him!_"

Ignoring the voice, Zell evilly smirked at Illidan. "Well, come on then."

Finally fully powered, Illidan raised his head to glare at Zell. Thrusting all his weight onto his good leg, he pushed forward at incredible speed. Wincing greatly as he shifted weight to his left leg, he continued to run and then used his right leg to finish the thrusting motion.

Pulling his left arm up to strike with, Illidan let out a loud yell, saying "SHADOW BLADE!"

Realizing the attack was coming, Zell threw up a barrier. Smirking, he arrogantly gloated, saying "Looks like your finished."

"DON'T UNDERESTIMATE ME!" Illidan yelled as he made contact with the barrier with his left hand.

Using the Hidden Inner Flame strength he had gathered up, he thrust all his power into a push, shattering the barrier with ease. He launched his body forward, aiming dead on for Zell's chest.

Seeing the attack coming, Zell was shocked, as well as slightly afraid. "There's just no way!" he yelled out.

"_MOVE YOU IDIOT!_" screamed the voice in his head.

Slightly moving, Illidan's new target became Zell's shoulder, which Illidan struck hard with his left hand, digging his five fingers into the joint.


	44. Chapter 44: Demands and Recovery

**Hey everyone! Well, not much has happened in the last 24 hours. I went home, kind of slept most of the evening, and then finally went to bed. My poor mate, she was so bored last night when I went to sleep. I woke up to find her walking around, seemingly lost and unsure of what to do, lol.**

**Wow, 2 people guessed the characters from Final Fantasy VIII quickly! Yes, the two remaining ones Marie (she wrote the history part for me originally and picked the three) took from Final Fantasy VIII were Squall Lionheart and Rionoa Heartilly. Squall was Illidan's mentor in the past, and Rionoa was Squall's wife. Thanks for figuring it out you two, and hence the chapter on Thursday will be in your guys honor.**

**Last time, Illidan's fight with Zell finally began with a hand to hand combat fight. Illidan quickly realized Zell had truly grown stronger than before, and in desperation released a technique meant to kill his opponent called Shadow Blade. At the last moment, Zell dodged and Illidan hit his shoulder, but what now will happen?**

**Time for some fun reviews!**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Lol, yes, no amount of training can overcome arrogance. Thanks about the fighting scenes. I had done a few in **_**TWS**_**, but I thought I'd really go all out for this one. Yes, it did combine elements from both DBZ and Naruto, which I thought helped out. Illidan's two main techniques, Inner Hidden Flame and Shadow Blade each came from the two shows. Inner Hidden Flame was really Goku's Kaioken (sp?) attack combined with the use of chakra from Naruto. As for Shadow Blade, it came solely from Naruto, and you guessed right, it's like Chidori, except it's Illidan style, lol. Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. Note none of the Yugioh (excluding Yami Marik) or GX (excluding Viper) really ever used physical attributes to fight. Usually, they just let their dueling skills do their fighting. Cool that you're having ideas for how the Sacred Beasts came to be and how they got to Duel Academy. Heh, never know, I may have done the same. Glad you really liked this chapter. I think it was probably one of my better. Thanks again!**

**Knives91: Lol, yeah, Zell got majorly owned. Thanks for the comments.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Yeah, I'm sure it really hurt. Heh, with a broken arm, leg, and ribs, Illidan sure has his hands full, and as you stated, nearly no Shadow Powers. I'm glad you liked the chapter. Thanks for the comments.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: LOL! Yes, a bit violent, and I can be that way in my writing. Heh, I'm kind of getting there in my **_**Another**_** story also, lol.**

**ardee: Yeah, I'm sure it threw everyone that the two would physically fight. Glad you liked it. Yes, the Shadow Blade attack is a bit unorthodox, but rather powerful. Yeah, before, I said for the most part, they used blasts of energy for Shadow Magic, but in this one, I expanded on it. Heh, you did get it right that Squall and Rionoa are in my stories, but they're not Vash and Blue. Lol, my mate chuckled at that, saying they were nearly nothing like Vash and Blue. But you did get the right FF characters, hence you get credit. Yes, he showed his despicable side, but then again, if someone was chocking you out, I think you might attack first, ask questions later. Hmm, Illidan bring out the Gods? Never know… Thanks for the comments.**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Yep, Zell was truly the power behind the Shadow Riders and Kagemaru. Glad you think this is going to get good. Wow, you got the characters, so like ardee, congrats! I'll post a chapter on Thursday now since you both got it!**

**Well, that's it for this go around. Congrats again to ardee and x-knight20 for guessing the correct characters. Heh, I could do another question, but eh, I already gave the answer away, lol. Thank you everyone for your comments. I enjoy them very much, and love answering your questions (so long as they don't give away the plot, lol). Again, thank you all, and enjoy this chapter!**

**Chapter 44**

Screaming out in pain, Zell leapt backwards in an attempt to escape. Looking at his shoulder, he saw five bloody holes and a heavily burned mark through his thick robe material. Panting heavily, he growled loudly at the sight.

"He actually hurt me!" Zell screamed out.

Illidan barely heard those words though as he began to fall to the ground. "I'm exhausted. I tried Marie, I tried so hard, but it just wasn't enough. Forgive me." he lightly mumbled on his way down.

Slamming into the ground, he began panting heavily. Fatigue was pushing him towards unconsciousness, but he struggled against it. Looking up, he saw Zell's horrified look and lightly smirked again.

Zell growled loudly and glared at the fallen figure of Illidan. "I'll …"

"_You won't do anything to him._" the voice commanded.

Sighing, Zell closed his eyes and listened to the voice. "_He is far stronger than I first anticipated. That technique is not one that is easy to learn. I believe he would be far more valuable to us alive._"

"Yes Master." Zell mumbled.

"_Use it on the girl._" the voice commanded.

Turning to Marie, Zell reached inside of his cloak and pulled out a hollowed out reed. Taking a small breath, Zell blew into the reed, shooting out a small dart. The dart hit Marie in the shoulder with very little resistance.

"What… are you doing to her?" Illidan asked with labored breaths.

Smirking, Zell responded with "I just injected her with a little poison that me and my Master came up with. Like before, this poison will slowly paralyze her. Unlike before though, she has six days to live. Master, would you like to explain his task, or shall I?"

Instantly, the answer came, as Zell's face seemed to lightly change. His eyes changed from a blue color to a cold looking golden set. With an icy voice, Zell said "It is nice to meet you face to face finally Illidan."

"Who?" Illidan asked with difficulty.

"I am known as Legato Bluesummers. I am the one who gave Zell his power, and now I reside within his body." Legato curtly responded.

Turning towards Marie, he said "That girl, she will be dead in six days time if you don't complete a set of tasks that I have for you. They are fairly simple tasks really. All you must do is retrieve the Egyptian God Cards for me and meet me at the spot where the Sacred Beasts were released last year."

Coldly, Legato added "Don't think I won't let that girl die if you fail. I am not very forgiving. Remember, in six days, bring the Egyptian God Cards to the site of where the Sacred Beasts were released last year."

Moving over to Marie, Legato went to pick her up, but heard Illidan, with a struggling voice, say "Leave her alone!"

Smirking, Legato ignored him and picked her up, throwing her over his shoulder. Glaring back at Illidan, he said "Don't fail Illidan. Her life hangs in the balance."

A cloud of darkness formed around the pair and they simply vanished. "Marie…" Illidan struggled to say.

"ILLIDAN!" cried out a voice.

Rapidly approaching steps caught his attention as he heard the person nearing. The figure came to a sliding stop beside of Illidan. Looking up, he saw it was Jaden, with tears streaming down his face.

"Hang on Illidan!" he sobbed out.

"Marie…" Illidan said in a low whisper before finally passing out.

Shaking his head wildly, Jaden cried out "Please, no, don't leave me! Don't die Illidan! You and Marie are all the family I have left, so please don't leave me alone again!"

Checking Illidan's vitals, Jaden quickly realized Illidan was still very alive. He let out a loud sigh and wiped the tears from his eyes. Gently, he began to pick Illidan up to a shouldering position, careful not to brush up against any of his wounds.

For nearly an hour, Jaden struggled to carry Illidan to the medical center. He finally made it, causing the nurses and doctors to scramble. They immediately placed him on a stretcher and took him into the center.

Jaden never once thought about leaving the center throughout the night. He waited till finally the doctors came out.

"IS HE ALRIGHT!?" Jaden immediately asked with some panic in his voice.

The doctor sighed and replied "He's very injured, but he may fully recover. He has a broken arm, leg, and ribs, with a little bit of internal bleeding. We got the bleeding to stop for now, so he should be alright. It'll be a long time though before he's up and about."

Nodding, Jaden asked "May I see stay in his room?"

Somewhat shocked, the doctor frowned, saying "Really, you can't. Only family is allowed."

"But I am family!" Jaden replied hastily, not thinking of what he was saying.

Sighing, the doctor glanced around and noted no one was close. Making a decision, he quietly replied "Alright, but you must leave him be. He needs rest."

Nodding solemnly, Jaden replied "I will."

"Go on ahead. It's room 115."

"Thank you." Jaden said as he walked down the hall.

Arriving in the room, Jaden saw Illidan laying on the medical bed. He had many tubes and needles stuck in his body, with many devices attached to him to monitor his vital signs.

Silently, Jaden pulled a chair up to Illidan's bed and sighed. "Man, that guy did a number on you. I wish I had been there… Maybe I could have done something."

Sighing once more, Jaden relaxed into the chair and watched Illidan calmly. "_I wonder if this is how it felt when mom lost dad, or even when I lost mom._" Jaden silently pondered.

Through the night, Jaden sat in the chair, watching Illidan intently. While Jaden watched, he never even noticed a small amount of Shadow Magic stirring in Illidan.

Illidan had silently regained some consciousness, and realized how badly the shape his body was in. Using the last of his Shadow Magic, he placed himself into a deep healing sleep and allowed his Shadow Powers to begin repairing the damage.

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All through the night and most of the next day, Jaden stayed at the bedside, not moving an inch. The doctors checked in on Illidan constantly, and urged Jaden to go home and get some sleep, but like his ancestor, Jaden stubbornly refused.

Finally, nearly evening the next day, Illidan began to slowly awaken. He tested the waters of his consciousness first, making sure that his body had healed somewhat. Finding the healing process had been rather successful, Illidan finally decided to fully awaken.

Seeing Illidan stirring, Jaden smiled. At long last, Illidan's eyes slowly fluttered open. They began to focus on the figure before him, which he instantly recognized as Jaden.

"You're finally awake!" Jaden excitedly said.

Groaning, Illidan softly replied "Yeah…"

He tried to sit up, but Jaden was quick to say "Don't do that. You're pretty banged up."

Lightly smirking, Illidan replied "Not really. I did a lot of healing in my sleep."

Gently, Illidan moved himself into a sitting position. Jaden gasped in shock, asking "How can you do that?"

"I used my Shadow Powers to heal my body. How long was I out?"

Thinking for a moment, Jaden finally replied "Nearly a day. You slept all night and most of today. In about six hours, it will be a full day."

"I see."

Testing his right arm, Illidan gently lifted it out of it's sling and moved it around a little. Due that it was in a cast, he couldn't tell for sure if it had fully healed or not. Opening and closing his hand, he finally figured that the bone must have healed. Carefully, he touched his right side to find that his ribs were wrapped heavily. Pushing on the wrapping, he felt some tenderness, but the certain broken feeling wasn't there. Checking his leg next, Illidan lightly touched it and moved it. It was in a heavy cast as well, but he could tell it felt like it was fixed.

"Almost good as new." he commented.

Shocked, Jaden asked "You mean you've almost healed completely from that fight in nearly one day!?"

"Yes. I was taught this ability long ago, and it's very helpful if you're badly injured. Of course, it consumes a lot of your Shadow Magic, but it's worth it. Plus, you're immobilized due that you have to sleep it off. In any case, by tomorrow, I should be one-hundred percent."

"Amazing." Jaden murmured.

Immediately, Illidan's thoughts turned elsewhere. "Marie…" he whispered as tears slowly slid down his cheeks.

Barely hearing it, Jaden sadly smiled, saying "We'll get her back man. Don't go and get bummed out."

"I failed her again." Illidan softly said in a mere whisper.

Shaking his head, Jaden replied "You did what you could man. By the way, what do you mean again?"

"Zell kidnapped her before in the past."

Raising an eyebrow, Jaden asked "In the past, like five millennia ago past?"

Sighing, Illidan nodded, and began to tell the tale of what had happened.

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"That Zell guy sounds nuts." Jaden stated after the story ended.

Illidan couldn't help but laugh at that. "He seems to be now, but he's a strong nut."

Frowning, Jaden asked "So, last year, the battle with the Shadow Riders, that was all his doing?"

"Yeah, it seems so. Why, I'm still unsure. Possibly to not soil his own hands, or to test the island's defenses."

Pausing for a moment, Illidan continued with "Whatever it was, it doesn't matter. What does matter now is I have to save Marie."

"But Zell has the antidote. How do you plan to get it?"

Pondering the question for a moment, Illidan finally said "I suppose by completing his little task and then offer the cards up in a duel in exchange for the antidote."

Nodding, Jaden replied "That sounds like a plan."

Frowning, Illidan said "The only problem is getting the cards."

"Are they very far away?"

Lightly chuckling, Illidan shook his head, saying "Actually, they're closer than you think. They're actually here on the island."

"WHAT!?" Jaden exclaimed.

Calming down, Jaden asked "You mean here on this island, Duel Academy Island!?"

Nodding, Illidan replied "Of course."

"But why here!?"

Smiling, Illidan simply said "Really easy. What better a place to hide the most powerful cards ever created than on an island dedicated to dueling?"

"Still, that's awfully dangerous. What if someone found them…"

Chuckling, Illidan replied "They won't be able to get to them. I sealed them myself. So there are no worries about that."

"I see. Is that why this Zell guy wants you to go get them?" Jaden asked curiously.

"I suppose. My seals were very well made, and you can't overpower a seal."

Frowning, Illidan continued with "But there is a problem… I can't undo my seals either. I have to fulfill the requirements in order to get the cards."

"What are the requirements? Maybe I can help." Jaden offered.

Sighing, Illidan replied "I wish it was that simple. What I must ask of you and a few others is difficult, not to mention dangerous. It almost makes me wish I hadn't made the seal that way."

Turning to Jaden, Illidan said "Jaden, I want you to go talk to Chazz and Alexis. I wish to talk to the three of you tomorrow at my house about the cards."

Jaden's brow furrowed, as he said "No offense Illidan, but I don't think you should leave the hospital yet."

"I won't till tomorrow. Don't worry, my body has nearly recovered. I'll be fully healed by tomorrow." Illidan reassured.

Sighing in defeat, Jaden replied "Ok."

"I want all of you to meet me at the house at noon tomorrow. That should be plenty of time."

"What if the others want to come along?" Jaden asked.

"Ask them not to. I don't wish to not include them, but it is necessary to keep them safe." Illidan replied.

Once more sighing, Jaden nodded, saying "Very well. Till then Illidan, you should rest up. We'll need you at full strength if we're to succeed."

"Right." Illidan said with a nod.

Standing, Jaden stretched and lightly yawned, saying "Man, I didn't know I was so tired."

"Thank you Jaden."

"Huh? What for?"

Smiling, Illidan replied "For bringing me here."

"No problem Illidan. Just get better." Jaden said back with a smile.

"Deal."

Turning and walking away, Jaden got to the door before stopping and saying "Please don't leave me."

With a questionable look on his face, Illidan asked "What do you mean leave you?"

Jaden turned around to only show half his face, which Illidan saw had a few stray tears running down his face. "I don't want to lose another person that I care about."

"Don't worry Jaden, I'm not very easy to become lost. Go rest and tell the others."

Nodding, Jaden wiped his tears away with his sleeve before smiling. "Take care Illidan."

"You too."

That said, Jaden opened the door and left Illidan's room. Sighing, Illidan sank back into the bed. Calling up his Shadow Powers once more, he fell back into his deep healing sleep, hoping it would finish the healing process.

As sleep overcame him, his mind settled on one person as it almost always did. "Marie…" he whispered as he fell into his healing sleep.

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The next morning, Illidan awoke around nine. Stretching, Illidan used his Shadow Powers to check the damage to his body. Finding no damage left, Illidan lightly smiled and sat up.

"No soreness. That's good." he murmured.

Carefully, he began unhooking all the wires and tubes that were attached to his body. Once free, he glanced at the casts on his leg and foot, plus the wrapping on his ribs.

Sighing, he glanced around the room for some kind of knife, but found none. "I guess I could just destroy the casts with my Shadow Powers."

Summoning up his Shadow Powers, he carefully used them to split the cast on his right hand in half. Once he had finished, the bottom half of the cast fell to the bed. Pulling the other half off the top of his arm, he moved his right hand around a bit, flexing his fingers. He slowly moved the remainder of his arm around too, making completely sure he was healed.

"Good as new." he commented with a smile.

Doing the same thing to the cast on his left leg, Illidan flexed his leg, making completely sure it was alright. Finding it was, he began to unwrap the bandages around his ribs.

Finally finished, Illidan swung his feet out of bed and stood up. Finding his body had fully recovered, he smiled. Walking over to where his clothes laid, he quickly dressed. Finding a hair brush, he tamed down his hair and looked in the mirror. He was a bit dirty, but he decided to shower once he got home.

The door suddenly came open, with a nurse in a white uniform with raven black mid-back length hair whose back was to him. "Good morning Mr. Stormrage. How are…"

She turned to find him standing fully dressed, and gasped, yelling "You shouldn't be out of bed!"

Lightly chuckling, he responded "I'm fine."

"No, you're injured! You shouldn't be up at all!" she argued back.

"Really, I'm fine. My leg, ribs, and arm are all healed."

Placing her hands on her hips, the nurse yelled back "You're still injured! Get back in bed now!"

Seeing the conversation was going nowhere, Illidan decided to take a different approach. Tapping into his Shadow Powers, he began to touch the woman's mind. Finding the memories of his condition, he slowly tampered with them, changing them so she wouldn't remember that he was injured.

Finishing, he left her mind and waited for her to say something. Her face formed into a frown. "May I help you sir?" she asked.

"Yes, I'm checking out." he replied.

"Oh, ok. I'll get you a release form."

"Thank you." he kindly said back.

She immediately left the room, forgetting the argument altogether. Sighing as she left, Illidan muttered "I hate doing that."

Once he finished getting ready, the nurse returned with a form, saying "Here you go, just sign this."

Signing, Illidan smiled, asking "I'm free to go now, right?"

Checking over the paperwork, she nodded, saying "Yes."

"Thank you."

After making sure he had everything, Illidan left the medical center. He quickly crossed the campus to his home and entered it. Finding Pharaoh was still gone, Illidan frowned.

"Where could he have gotten to?" he softly questioned.

Shrugging, he preceded to layout some new clothes to wear and headed for the shower. Turning on the water, Illidan undressed and moved into the water slowly. Standing under the hot steamy water for a while, Illidan felt the tension slowly melt away.

"_I have to find Marie and get her the cure quickly. I just hope Zell leaves her be. If he touches her like she mentioned he thought about last time, I'll kill him._"

Finishing up his shower, he dried off and dressed in a pair of jeans and a black button up short sleeve shirt with an orange undershirt. Staring in the mirror, Illidan pondered if he should even worry about bounding his hair up or not, but decided to go with the later like he always did.

Once finished, he grabbed a bowel of Ramen and a sandwich. Finishing up, he waited for the others to arrive.


	45. Chapter 45: Choices and Acts

**Hello everyone! Well, another day goes by, and not much new really, lol.**

**This chapter is in honor of both ardee and x-knight20 who answered my question the other day about who were the other 2 characters used from FF8. Thank you both for answering that question. As for when I'll post a question again, eh, I'll think about it, lol.**

**Last time, Illidan learned that Legato is the true power behind Zell, and Marie was once more kidnapped and poisoned. Illidan now is in a race against time to collect the Egyptian God Cards in order to leverage for Marie's freedom and life. After healing, he has returned home, awaiting Jaden, Chazz, and Alexis. Can Illidan save his lifetime mate, and what part do these three students play?**

**Ok, time once more for the reviews! (/Queues up some Bleach music.\)**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Yeah, she's a victim once more, but a willing one, we'll see, hehe. Thanks. Ah, yeah, violent scenes are necessary sometimes to tell the story.**

**pink-kiss-candy: It's cool. Lol, actually, the answer was in the chapter I posted that day. Well, ½ of the answer. Lol, poor Ryon. (/Watches another giant clay creature land on top of military fort. Salutes Ryon as explosion blows fort away.\)**

**Isis the Sphinx: Yeah, history does tend to repeat. Lol, yeah, it does repeat in this story I suppose. Well, with a twist, lol. Thank you.**

**ardee: Heh, yeah. Oh, there is a good question! Eh, I don't know about if Squall really resembles Vash. There are some similarities, but not enough really. But yes, Legato wants the Gods, and I'm sure he has big plans for them. Thanks about the development of Jaden. I know, he's strange in the show, but I gave him a bit of a similar, if not different, personality in my fic. But yes, the duels are coming, so stay patient, lol.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Lol, she has a frequent kidnapper's card on her. It gets punched every time she's kidnapped, hehe. True, it would have been interesting if Jaden had been captured, but that ruins the plot I have if I did that, lol. I guess it is true that it's become expected that Marie is kidnapped, but in **_**TWS**_**, it was by her choice. She sacrificed herself in it to save Blue instead of taking her soul. Yeah, I know, I'd hate to be stuck with that curse. Viper was interesting to say the least, and did fight with Gecko. Yes, Legato is a bit of a strange name, but it's his name. Yep, he was the one in the fourth slap, not a monster. Why you may say? Maybe he'll tell us all sometime, hehe. Yes, that would be really odd if he was Anubis, thus making it very odd, lol. It's cool about being nit-picky over Marie. Heh, she'll have her say in things soon enough, I'm sure. Thanks for the comments.**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Yep, kidnapped and poisoned once more. Lol, so you were betting on her getting kidnapped!? Eh, it's the safest bet around, lol.**

**Thank you everyone for your comments. I'm glad you all liked the chapter. Yes, I know, Marie is kidnapped rather often, but as I said in the review above, in **_**TWS**_**, she wasn't kidnapped. She willingly sacrificed herself then. **_**ToP**_**, eh, she did get kidnapped there, and in some of the past. I know, it's like splitting hairs, but lol, that's just me.**

**Now then, I do have a two-part question for everyone. Where did I get the idea for Legato Bluesummers? And if you can get that, what group did he belong to? Anyone who can answer this will get me to post a chapter on Tuesday.**

**Alright, now to some seriousness. This is a strong disclaimer for everyone. This chapter is seriously ranked T towards the end. Myself, I can read this and not be effected, other than feeling angry towards the character that committed the acts, but I digress, I warn you all about this chapter. I shall place the disclaimer above the section before it begins so those who may wish not to read it won't. Reason I disclaimer is it depicts intentions towards rape, but not an actual rape. Just thought I'd warn you if you have any kind of desire not to read.**

**I hope this doesn't affect anyone, but I just wanted to warn you all. Please, do read with caution. Thank you, and enjoy.**

**Chapter 45**

Right at noon, the trio of Jaden, Alexis, and Chazz arrived at Illidan's home. Opening the door even before they could knock, Illidan smiled, asking them to come in. Each of the three were wearing their usual clothing. The three calmly filed into the house, with Illidan offering them places to sit in the main room.

"I'm glad the three of you are here." Illidan said with a smile.

Chazz only crossed his arms over his chest, saying "I could careless about being here myself."

"Don't be like that Chazz." Jaden commented.

"Yeah, just chill out Chazz." Alexis added.

"Whatever…" Chazz huffed out.

Lightly smiling at the three, Illidan said "I called you three here for a specific reason. As you know, the other night, Syrus and Hasselberry lost a duel to that stranger."

The three nodded, each seeming to slightly grimace at the memory. Continuing, Illidan said "Once you all left, I identified the stranger."

Sighing, Illidan said "I know this maybe hard for you all to figure out, so it's better if I show you possibly like I did with Jaden."

Closing his eyes, Illidan tapped into his Shadow Powers and sent out his memory of the past events that Zell had been in.

After nearly an hour, the memory ended, snapping everyone back into the present. Chazz and Alexis looked at one another oddly, but Jaden acted totally normal.

"What was that?" Alexis finally asked.

"A memory from my past. You see, I know this maybe hard for you to believe, but I am the reincarnation of the man you saw in the past. You know, the one named Illidan that looked exactly like me."

Alexis nodded, with Chazz mumbling "Great, a nut job professor."

Smirking, Illidan said "Chazz, you should know there are some things in this world that can't be explained, like that Shadow Charm of yours."

Chazz only frowned at that and lightly huffed. Continuing on, Illidan said "Anyways, that man you saw, Zell, he is the one that attacked our friends last night."

"Was he reincarnated too?" Alexis asked.

Shaking his head, Illidan replied "No, he wasn't. He somehow managed to survive five millennia. That isn't the point though. He's back now and is very dangerous."

Looking at all three in their eyes, Illidan continued with "He intends to plunge the world into darkness using the Sacred Beast Cards. I tried to stop him that night after everyone left, but was badly injured in my attempt. He broke my right arm, the right side of my ribs, and my left leg. Needless to say, he's extremely dangerous."

"How can that be though? You're walking perfectly fine, and seem uninjured now. No one gets up and moves around like you are after injuries like that." Chazz stated.

Smiling, Illidan nodded, saying "True, but I'm not just anyone. I'm a person with Shadow Powers, who has the ability to heal also. Since I slept for nearly two days, I was able to recoup from the injuries. My body has fully healed, so I'm no longer hurt."

"Sounds reasonable, I guess." Alexis slowly said.

"Good. There is one other thing about the other night. I don't know if anyone else other than Jaden had noticed, but Marie is missing." Illidan stated with a twinge of sadness in his voice.

Alexis lightly gasped and Chazz even flinched at those words. "Zell has her, and has poisoned her. She only has six days to live before the poison paralyzes her body completely." Illidan said with sadness.

The group all had downcast eyes, with Jaden finally asking "How many days are left?"

"Including today, there are four left. That's why I needed to ask you all here. There is a chance to save her from the poison, but I need your three's help." Illidan said with a bit of a sigh.

Continuing, he added "Zell is willing to return Marie with the cure if I bring him the Egyptian God Cards."

Both Chazz and Alexis looked at Illidan wide eyed, with Chazz saying "But they're gone! Yugi Moto claimed they vanished!"

Smirking, Illidan shook his head, saying "Not quite. True, they did vanish, but that was due that they were hidden. Yugi only made that story up to cover it up."

"How do you know?" Chazz asked in a challenging voice.

Once more smirking, Illidan replied "Because I'm the one who hid them on this very island."

At the same time, Alexis and Chazz yelled "WHAT?!"

Laughing at their expressions, Illidan said "I hid them here on this island about ten years ago. It was the safest place to put them, plus I hid them rather well."

"And you're telling us why?" Chazz arrogantly asked.

Sighing, Illidan replied "I need your help to retrieve them. You see, Zell can't retrieve them himself due that I placed very specific seals on them. He is unable to overpower the seals I left in place, so he had to resort to having me collect them."

Frowning, he added "Unfortunately, I can't rightfully collect them myself either. That's where the three of you come in."

Standing, Illidan turned to face the window for a moment before turning back to the others, saying "Each of the shrines have special doors. To open the door to each, two requirements must be met. The first is you must be a student of the dorm of the Egyptian God's shrine, meaning if you're after Slifer, you need to be a Red Dorm student, etc."

"And the second requirement?" Alexis asked calmly.

Sighing lightly, Illidan replied "You must have at least one Shadow Charm in your possession. That is why I asked only the three of you here."

Taking this all in, Alexis asked "So, you picked Jaden, Chazz and me due that we each happen to belong to a different dorm each, plus we each have a Shadow Charm, correct?"

Nodding, Illidan smiled lightly, saying "Correct. Of course, there is more to getting the Egyptian God Cards than having the door open."

"What else is there?" Jaden asked with a bit of excitement in his voice.

Running a hand through his hair, Illidan responded with "There is also a guardian protecting each card. To retrieve the card, you must duel in a Shadow Game against the guardian. The stakes of the game are very high, not to mention the decks they use are dangerous. Each are able to play the Egyptian God Card they possess, so it could come out against you. In any case, win and you receive the Egyptian God Card, but lose and you not only lose your Shadow Charm, but you lose your soul too."

Those words appeared to hit the group of three hard as each looked downward. Seeing this, Illidan added "I can't tell you all to do this, and I don't wish for you to feel you have to. I really wish I didn't even have to ask you three to help with this, but I have no choice. To save Marie, I have to find a way. So, I ask each of you this, will you please help me save Marie?"

Immediately, Jaden responded, saying "I will gladly help you Illidan. You've been a great friend, not to mention we're family. I'd hate myself for not trying at the least to help save Marie. So, I'm in!"

"Thank you Jaden." Illidan humbly said.

After a moment, Alexis said "I'll help you. Professor Marie is a great teacher, and she's been like a friend to all of us. I'd never abandon a good person like her, so I'm in too!"

Smiling kindly, Illidan nodded, saying "Thank you Alexis."

The group then turned to Chazz, who sat with his arms crossed over his chest and eyes closed. The three stared at him as he sat like a stone statue.

"Well, how about it Chazz?" Jaden asked.

"I'm thinking." Chazz mumbled back.

The three Ojama Brothers suddenly appeared around Chazz in their Duel Spirit forms, each shaking and grooving away.

"_Come on boss, do it!_" the yellow urged.

"_We could be heroes boss!_" added the black one.

"_And we'd be respected!_" the green one added.

Growling at the three, Chazz opened his eyes and began shooing them away with his hand, saying with anger "Shut up!"

"Chazz, are you alright?" Alexis asked with questionable eyes.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"So, are you going to help? Don't hold out on us, please." Alexis asked while batting her eyes at Chazz.

Blushing lightly, Chazz finally said "Sure, I'm in."

Smiling, Illidan nodded, saying "Good. Thank you, all of you. You don't know how much this really means to me."

"We know you'd do it for us Illidan, so don't worry about it." Jaden replied.

Once more smiling, Illidan said "Yeah. Ok, tonight we head out for the first shrine, which is the Obelisk Shrine."

Pointing to herself, Alexis asked "That one is mine, correct?"

"Yes, it is. Make sure you prepare your deck especially well." Illidan replied.

"Right, I will."

"We'll meet back here at nine tonight. And please, don't tell anyone else about what is going on. I don't wish anyone to get hurt." Illidan said.

"Ok." the three chimed in.

Smiling, Illidan said "Thank you. I guess I'll see you all later."

The three bid farewell and went their own ways, each seemingly contemplating what would happen in their duels with the guardians.

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Sitting in a cave, Zell lightly smirked at what he and his master had accomplished. "Soon, very soon Illidan will bring us the Egyptian God Cards, and then we shall reenergize the Sacred Beasts!"

Smirking once more, Zell whispered "Master, all goes according to plan."

Nothing but silence continued to fill Zell's mind, making him ask "Master?"

"_Illidan will not cooperate. I think he will try to rescue the girl even if he completes his task. He is not foolish enough to hand over cards that could end the world over one girl._" Legato finally said.

Thinking for a second, Zell replied "Master, we could make sure he does keep his end of the bargain."

"_How do you propose we do that?_"

Smirking, Zell replied with arrogance filling his voice "We have our three friends take the Egyptian God Cards once they are won. We'll of course have to keep a close watch on the three chosen duelists and see who goes to win their card, but that shouldn't be a problem. Once we see, we'll send one of the three to retrieve it if the chosen duelist wins the card."

"_I doubt Illidan will allow that, but the others could possibly pull it off. We shall try your plan._"

"Thank you my Master. There is another problem to address though. Suppose Illidan does collect three of the cards. The fourth still remains to be collected by Illidan himself most likely. Who will try to take his card?"

Silence ensued, till finally Legato replied "_I know of one person who could take that card, but he will need some convincing. His soul is in a state of confusion due to the loss of his brother. It will need a bit of a push to get him to do our bidding._"

Knowing the person Legato spoke of, Zell nodded, saying "Of course my Master. He will do well to take Illidan apart."

Pausing for a moment, Zell licked his lips and finally said "All that is left is the slave girl. Master… I have a favor to ask concerning her."

_**Disclaimer: The following section is rated T for a reason. The following depicts intentions that lead you to believe it is on rape. It is not an actual one, but I warn you all ahead of time just in case you wish not to read it. Read ahead at your own risk. Thank you.**_

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Lightly groaning, Marie slowly began to stir. "Man I have a killer headache…" she moaned.

Trying to move her arms and legs, Marie found she couldn't. Opening her eyes, she glanced around. It took her a moment to adjust to her surroundings, but once she did, she looked at both her arms and legs to find she was shackled to a wall.

"What the…" she started when realization suddenly hit her as she remembered what had last happened.

Thinking, she remembered the events of the last time she was awake. "_I had jumped on Zell's back and tried to stop him from hurting Illidan. Illidan yelled for me to run, which distracted me, and Zell threw me off. I was knocked out when I hit the ground._"

Fear suddenly filled her as she realized a possibility of what may have happened. "Illidan…" she whispered.

Reaching out with her Shadow Powers, she searched for Illidan's prescience. She found immediately that she couldn't seemingly find anything, as if she was being blocked.

"Great… I'm shackled down and I can't sense anything. Just perfect…" she sarcastically muttered.

Hearing footsteps approaching, she looked up to see Zell coming into the room. Glaring at him, she yelled "What did you do to Illidan!?"

"My, my, someone is in a foul mood." Zell remarked.

Growling, Marie angrily spat back "Let me go and tell me what you did with Illidan!"

Walking towards Marie, Zell replied in a husky voice "I wouldn't worry about that fool my little slave girl."

Shivers ran up her spine from Zell's reply, making Marie slightly cringe. Memories of the last time she had encountered Zell flooded back to her, making her hope this time was much better. By the look he was giving her, she was beginning to think otherwise.

Desire filled Zell's eyes as he slowly removed his long black robe, revealing a white trench coat with a black shirt and black pair of pants. His icy blue eyes stared at her, seemingly lusting after her body.

Moving closer, Marie struggled to free herself, only finding she was completely at Zell's mercy as long as she was chained up. "LEAVE ME ALONE!" she screamed, hoping to maybe shout some kind of common sense into him.

Licking his lips, Zell smirked evilly, shaking his head, saying "Not this time my little slave girl. Last time, the poison would have killed you due to what I had in mind, but not this time. I will show you this time what a true sex slave is used for."

Irked to no end that he still thought she had been a sex slave to Yami, she angrily spat out "I WAS NEVER A SEX SLAVE TO YAMI! GET THAT THROUGH YOUR THICK HEAD YOU FREAKING PERVERT!"

Chuckling darkly as he moved to only a foot away, Zell replied "I'm sure you were told that, but I know how evil the Pharaoh was. He may have shown you his ways, but trust me, my ways are much better."

Marie tensed up, screaming "Don't come any closer!"

"Or you'll do what?" Zell sarcastically replied.

Without hesitation, he reached out and softly squeezed her breasts with both bare hands. Marie squirmed and wiggled, trying desperately to get free. Finally realizing she had no way to free herself or get away, she summoned up her Shadow Powers and threw a wave of Shadow Magic at Zell, knocking him back five feet away.

Coming to a skidding stop, Zell smirked evilly, saying "That wasn't very nice. I'll have to punish you now for being naughty."

Zell slowly walked back towards her, making Marie scream "Stay back! I swear I'll kill you if you don't stop now!"

Ignoring her, Zell continued on till another wave of Shadow Magic slammed into him, pushing him backwards again. As he came to a skidding stop, Zell let out a feral growl that made cold chills run up and down Marie's spine.

Focusing on freeing herself, she used her Shadow Powers once more, throwing a wave of Shadow Magic at each of the chains holding her to the wall. With four blasts, the shackles were shattered and she was free.

She began running towards the only doorway she had seen when suddenly Zell moved to block the door. Cursing under her breath, she backed away, trying to figure out what to do.

"Slaves have to earn their freedom my dear, and with all this disobedience, you won't be getting free. Come now and give in." Zell said with a deep husky voice. Lust and desire was still spilling from his eyes as he eyed Marie like a fine piece of meat.

Stepping back, Marie took up a fighting stance. "No way in hell I'll give in to the likes of you! I'll die before I ever let you do that to me!"

Smirking at her stance, Zell huskily said "You will give in before the end. I do wonder how those little br…"

Before he could finish his sentence, Marie rushed forward, throwing fists at Zell's face. Expertly, Zell dodged the onslaught with ease. Spinning around, Marie threw a side kick only to have Zell knock it away, making her stumble forward. As she did, Zell groped her butt and then gave it a small smack.

"Ah, very firm." he commented with lust filling his voice.

Furious at the comment and blinded by her anger, Marie spun around and threw a new barrage of fists. Zell easily knocked away each fist, making her only madder. Deciding to take a few chances, Marie threw in several kicks as well, but as before, Zell knocked them away and took the opportunity to grope her time after time.

Seemingly finally finished playing around, Zell rushed Marie and threw the two of them to the ground, with him falling on top. Pinning her to the ground, Zell summoned up his Shadow Powers to form bonds around Marie's wrists and ankles. The bonds stretched her arms and legs out to spread her out, making her very vulnerable to Zell.

"I have you now." he said, his voice full of lust and desire.

Grabbing hold of Marie's blouse, he ripped it off, making Marie struggle even more and scream for him to stop. Ignoring her protests, he reached for her jeans and used his Shadow Powers to rip them off of her body. About to fully expose her, Zell evilly grinned as he prepared his Shadow Powers to cut her undergarments off.

Fear, panic, and anger filled Marie, causing the one thing she had been waiting for to suddenly flare up. Without warning, suddenly, a huge burst of Shadow Magic was released from Marie's body, knocking Zell off of her body and into the air about ten feet and into the wall on the far side of the room.

"You little whore!" Zell screamed, furious now as he rushed towards her.

Marie released more of her powers, instantly destroying the shackles that held her to the ground. Standing up, Marie glared at Zell, screaming "I could never forgive you for what you've tried to do to me, and for what you've done to Illidan! I'll kill you!"

"You won't do anything other than serve me!" Zell countered as he continued to rush towards her.

Attempting to tackle her once more, Zell was extremely surprised when Marie dodged and delivered a sickening kick to his ribs. Holding them, he backed away a little bit, only to be overtaken by Marie. Blow after blow, Marie hammered him hard and long with her fists and fast feet.

"_Something is wrong! She's not this fast or strong!_" Zell screamed in his mind.

Panting hard and wincing from all his wounds, Zell fell to one knee. Concentrating on healing, Zell focused his power and began to feel his wounds closing and healing over.

Looking up at Marie, he glared and prepared to move forward when suddenly Legato stopped him. "_Fool, don't fight her. She is too much for you. She's far stronger than Illidan was._"

Shocked, Zell mentally replied "_Master, what do you suggest then?_"

Without a word, Zell found the answer. He was pushed into the back of his mind as Legato took over his body.

_**End Disclaimer**_

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Glaring at Zell, Marie yelled "Come on! Come here so I can kill you!"

He had looked down a moment before, seemingly lost in thought. Looking back up suddenly, Marie noticed something was different. No longer were Zell's eyes icy blue, but were golden now.

"You'll have to forgive Zell. He knows nothing of restraint, plus I told him I cared not what he did. I should have restrained him, but that is in the past now." a new voice said from Zell.

Confused, Marie asked "What the hell is up with you!? Why did your voice change, and why are your eyes different!?"

Lightly chuckling, the new voice said "That is to be expected. You were asleep when I revealed myself to Illidan. I am Legato Bluesummers. I inhabit Zell's body."

Realization dawned on Marie's face, making her say "You're the reason he's so much stronger, aren't you!?"

"Correct. Five millennia ago, Zell disturbed my chamber where I was imprisoned in a slab of stone. I gave Zell a portion of my power after he told me the story of how the Pharaoh had wronged him. When he failed to finish the Pharaoh Yami, I saved him. For the last five millennia, Zell slumbered while I transferred my powers to him. I did it extremely slowly so that we would go unnoticed. Ten years ago, I finished and woke him. Since then, we have been one person."

"That explains a lot." Marie muttered.

Smirking, Legato looked into Marie's face fully, saying "I see that the blood line of the Kirins still flows."

Confused, Marie says "Whatever, but if you come any closer to me, I'll kill you!"

Nodding, Legato kindly smiled, saying "I don't blame you. What Zell tried to do was totally out of line. I turned a blind eye to it due that I didn't really care what he did. I should have kept him away from you. I apologize for that. I will make sure Zell never tries to touch you again. As a gesture of good will, I offer you this."

Opening his palm, Legato pointed to the ground in front of himself. His hand glowed black for a moment till finally a white piece of fabric formed. Once the glow died down, Legato picked up the piece of fabric and threw it to Marie.

Turning his back to her, Legato says "That dress should fit you. I know it's pointless for me to not look now, but I figured it was only fair.

Examining the dress that Legato threw her, Marie finally slipped it on over her head, saying "You can turn back around. Make any kind of move though, and you're dead."

Chuckling as he turned back around, Legato commented "You are the same as the Kirins of old days."

"Who are these Kirins you talk about?"

Smiling, Legato replied "I suppose you wouldn't know, with the pharaoh of my time eliminating all traces of the clans. I guess I should tell you then."


	46. Chapter 46: Reminiscing

**Hey guys! Well, last night was fun. I saw my grandfather, and he's doing better than last time I saw him. He stayed awake apparently since early Thursday morning till I left, although he dozed off and on during the evening while I was there. He was very much awake, and knew what was going on and who was there. Heh, he knew I was there, which was a good sign. Today, he's supposed to be discharged from the hospital and be moved back to the nursing home for a week. Once the week is over, my grandmother is going to take him home since my mom is coming in next Friday. So, grandpa is going home soon, although I worry about it being too much for my grandmother. We'll see I suppose. I'll be going up often still, but I worry for her nonetheless. Other than that, life is going about normal I suppose.**

**Heh, I've come up with a few ideas for the sequel to this story, but I've yet to really sit down and write them down, or begin. Eh, I can't seem to concentrate on it. Plus, I've yet to make a title for it, lol. As for **_**Another**_**, it seems to be the only story I can focus on right now. I'm really getting into it, so it maybe a short period of time before I get back into writing on the sequel to **_**FG**_**. We'll see… I only have 4 chapters for **_**Another**_** done as is, but they cover more than I figured. So, here's hoping I get some kind of focus on the sequel for **_**FG**_**, but time will tell.**

**Wow, no one answered my trivia question. Well, I guess I'll post it again and see what I get, and if no one answers, I'll have to give some hints I suppose. Don't forget, it's a 2 part question, so to get full credit, you have to get both parts. At any rate, here it is!**

**Where did I get the idea (name) for Legato Bluesummers from? And if you can get that, what group did he belong to? Anyone who can answer this will get me to post a chapter on Tuesday.**

**I'm surprised everyone didn't mind the last chapter. I only threw the disclaimer up due that I didn't want to scare everyone off. I know stuff like that don't bother me, but I guess in a way, it does since I despise the thought of someone raping someone. At any rate, I just wanted to warn everyone last time, but I'm glad no one had a problem with it to the point they couldn't read it.**

**Last time, Illidan spoke with Jaden, Chazz, and Alexis, asking them to help him recollect the Egyptian God Cards. The seals on the cards were explained that to release them, there needed to be a student from the card's dorm and have a Shadow Charm. Can the three students release the Egyptian Gods, or are they in danger of losing far more than they bargained for? Also, Zell attempted to force himself onto Marie, but she fought back, making Legato appear to him. What is the story behind this man, and what does he know of Marie's bloodline?**

**Alright, time to get down to it! It's review time!**

**Knives91: Lol, yeah, the bad guys seem to be winning, for now. Thanks, and I shall try to keep this up.**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Hmm, Illidan facing Anubis? Eh, I don't know… I mean, it's like the others, or I suppose it is. (/Smiles evilly.\) Don't you just hate it when I don't give a straight answer, lol.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Yeah. LOL! Come on out Ryon. (/Watches little clay spiders run under the bed and hears a scream, then an explosion, and watches smoke pour out from under bed.\) Poor man…**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Yeah, it doesn't affect me that much. Heh, it's just something I've learned that it's fiction, not real life. Yeah, the end is a bit confusing, but maybe Legato can shed some light on what's going on…**

**ardee: Yes, he deserved that and more. Eh, Marie did a bit of damage, and Zell learned he can't hurt Marie on his own now. Yes, this story is much more mature and serious than the other stories. Well, **_**TWS**_** was pretty serious, but this one has more fighting and struggles, lol. It's just something new I was trying out. Hmm, yes, it's Chazz vs. the guardian who protects Ra. Same for Jaden and Alexis. Each have to face a guardian who protects an Egyptian God Card. Heh, yeah, there are lots of predictions, as in can they win, and what Zell has planned also. Lol, I actually don't know what the next story will be called. I'm working on naming it, but like **_**FG **_**and **_**TWS**_**, I'm having difficulty naming it. Heh, **_**ToP**_** was the only one of the three I've had an easy time of naming. Lol, even my Inuyasha fic suffered the same fate when I began it. I finally named it **_**Another**_** thanks to my mate's idea of naming it that. No problem about the extra chapter. Thanks for the comments.**

**Well, that's it for today. I hope this chapter explains things and leaves you all in a small bit of shock and surprise. Ah yes, thank you neoblacksmith17 for adding my stories as a favorite. Heh, this story just keeps getting more and more adds, which makes me so happy. Thank you all again for your reviews, and I hope someone guesses the answer to my question. Here it is once more.**

**Where did I get the idea (name) for Legato Bluesummers from? And if you can get that, what group did he belong to? Anyone who can answer this will get me to post a chapter on Tuesday.**

**Alright, I'm finished for today. Enjoy the chapter everyone, and have a good weekend!**

**Chapter 46**

"My story begins six and half millennia ago, at a time when Egypt only had one Egyptian God, Anubis."

Marie slightly gasped at this, but Legato ignored it, continuing with "Egypt had no need for large armies back then, for it was protected by a single guardian who wielded three powerful monsters known as the Sacred Beasts."

"You mean the Sacred Beasts were used to protect Egypt all those years ago?" Marie asked, somewhat in shock.

Nodding, Legato continued, saying "As you know, the three are Uria, Lord of Searing Flames; Hamon, Lord of Striking Thunder; and Raviel, Lord of Phantasm. Together, the three were the protectors of Egypt, along with the sole guardian."

Slightly smirking, Legato added "Each guardian served a twenty year term. Once the twenty years were up, a new guardian was chosen. When this time came, the five mighty clans of Egypt would each send a representative to battle it out to find out who the new guardian would be. The battles would consist of three stages, and the one that proved most worthy would be guardian."

Pausing for a moment, Legato finally moved on, saying "The five clans that battled it out every twenty years were the Sylvains, Bluesummers, Sirians, Trians, and Kirins. Out of the five, the Kirins were the strongest. Their representatives were almost always the victor."

"Why was that?" Marie asked, somewhat curious now.

Lightly chuckling, Legato replied "I guess due that the Kirins always passed on their skills and knowledge to their children. You see, when a Kirin was made guardian, they would marry while young and have a child. That child would almost always became the new guardian."

Seeing Marie frowning at this, Legato added "I forgot to mention, there was an age limitation on guardians as well. They had to be between the ages of eighteen and twenty-five. Normally, the guardians were closer to the age of eighteen due that the person married young enough to produce an heir."

"Oh…" Marie mumbled.

Smirking at her reaction, Legato continued on, saying "At any rate, six and half millennia ago, the last Kirin guardian's term came to an end. She had married and had a child very late into the term of her guardianship, thus the Kirins had to pick a new representative. From what she told me, she didn't care. She said she was happy, but the clan scrambled to pick another worthy candidate."

Taking a moment to stop, Legato said "The competition for that year was intense. The three matches that were used to decide a guardian were simple. The first was strategic planning, followed by a Shadow Game, and finally a sword fight. Normally, no one died in these competitions due that everyone knew the bounds."

"So, who won that year?" Marie asked, curious to know.

Chuckling, Legato replied "The clan that proved itself the strongest that year was none other than a clan that had the fewest picked guardians. That clan was the Bluesummers. I was the final guardian."

Marie lightly gasped, asking "You mean you were the last one?"

"Yes, I was. I remember how proud my clan had been when I triumphed, and how proud my mother and father were specifically."

Slightly smirking, Legato continued with "The pharaoh was very proud of me as well, and said my reign as guardian would be one of the greatest."

Frowning, Legato added "How wrong he would be."

"What do you mean?" Marie asked.

"I'll get to that." Legato replied.

Sighing for a moment, Legato continued once more, saying "For ten years, I served the pharaoh loyally, keeping out the many foreign invaders. I never once complained or asked for time off. I only did my job respectfully."

Smiling sadly, he looked up at the ceiling, saying "I had married only a year after taking the guardianship over. My wife, she was very beautiful. She had ebony black hair that fell to her knees, the most gorgeous blue eyes, and the most wonderful smile."

Looking closely, Marie thought she saw tears in his eyes, and was about to ask about them when he continued. "Our only child, a son, he looked so similar to her. I was proud of my son, and loved my wife fully. I never once violated our marriage, for I was faithful and fully devoted to her and our child."

The tears suddenly vanished as anger formed on his face. "In my tenth year, while I was off defending Egypt, a discovery was made about the invaders. A letter had been intercepted on route to a set of invaders that had my family's insignia on it. In it, it had maps and points where the invaders could come into Egypt!"

Marie gasped in shock, while Legato loudly growled. With anger filling his voice, he said "My own family had been calling the invaders in! Even my wife had joined my mother and father in doing it! When the pharaoh found out, he grew angry with my family and had them captured. The people demanded their execution, but he wanted them to have a trial. Instead of letting a trial ensue, the people threatened to revolt!"

Angry tears slid down Legato's face, as he yelled "The pharaoh gave into the people, sentencing all of my family to death. None were spared but me since I was not linked to any of the letters. My own wife and child died due to my parents' decision!"

Turning angrily to Marie, he angrily asked "Have you ever had everything that you ever loved taken away from you!?"

Feeling for him, Marie nodded, saying "I lost both my parents due that the pharaoh in my time was afraid of me. I was only three years old, but I was already tremendously stronger than the pharaoh's heir, Yami. That caused the pharaoh to fear me, so he tried to have me executed. My mother and father were killed, along with my unborn brother or sister, but I was left to die."

"Then you know the anger I felt, and still feel! I did nothing to lose everything I loved dearly, but yet I did!"

"I understand your anger and pain. It took me many years to learn of this due that my memories of my early childhood were erased. Once I learned, anger consumed me, but I put it aside. The new love I found in my life helped ease the pain, and I let the anger slip away. That darkness did take over my heart a nearly ten years ago, but love helped free me from it." Marie calmly said.

Growling, Legato yelled "Not with me! I can never forget! My family deserved a fair trial, yet the pharaoh gave in! Rather than save them, he killed them! When I returned from my patrol, I was told by the pharaoh himself how sorry he was to have had my family killed. He profusely apologized, saying he had no choice, but he did! He could have told the people to stand down and used force to stop them! Instead he sacrificed an innocent woman and child!"

Knowing the pain that Legato was feeling, Marie countered with "I realize that, but he was facing a crisis. If he hadn't, you would have come home to much worse than your family being cut down."

"THAT'S NO EXCUSE FOR WHAT WAS DONE!" Legato screamed, making his Shadow Powers flare wildly.

Turning away, he growled lightly, saying "I asked for a month's leave in order to go bury my family, which was granted. I left, hoping to bury my anger as well."

With his Shadow Powers still flaring, he bitterly said "I buried them, hoping that grieving would help lessen the pain, but it made it more intense. That's when I made my decision."

Moving to face Marie, Legato continued with "I decided to destroy the ones who had caused that atrocity. In deciding that, I knew my life would never be the same, but I accepted that. I fully committed myself to the decision and left Egypt temporarily."

"You shirked off your duties?" Marie asked, unsure how anyone could just do that.

Smirking evilly, Legato replied "Of course. I wasn't about to serve a master anymore. I made myself my new master. I heard rumors from the city once I left that everyone was looking for me. After a few months, they gave up. Six months after I had left though, I returned."

Coldly, he added "I returned to the outskirts of Egypt. The people recognized me and tried to talk with me, but I ignored them. Moving to the center of that town, I summoned the three Sacred Beasts. The people thought I was giving a demonstration of the creatures, showing what they looked like."

Darkly smirking, Legato said "But that wasn't it. No longer were the Sacred Beasts themselves. No, I transformed them into The Legendary Demons, and they had a job to do! I used them to completely obliterate the entire village."

Marie softly gasped, and asked in shock "Why!? Those people had done nothing to you!"

"BECAUSE THEY DESERVED IT! ALL OF EGYPT DESERVED IT!" Legato roared back.

Taking a moment to calm, Legato continued on, saying "I left no survivors in that village. I sent a note by pigeon to the palace, telling the pharaoh that I intended to destroy Egypt, and that I would soon destroy the capital. The fool tried to convince me otherwise with many messengers, but I ignored them. I only continued to cut a swath of destruction straight for the palace, killing everything and everybody in my way."

"How could you!? Those people in the way were innocent!" Marie yelled in anger.

"They were low level garbage, part of the groups that conspired against my parents and family. I felt no guilt then, and I feel none now." Legato coldly stated.

Softly growling, Marie could feel her anger boiling over. Seeing this, Legato chuckled darkly, saying "I cared nothing for those that tried to stop me. When I reached the outskirts of the city, the pharaoh rode out to meet me. He begged for me to stop my attacks, saying peace could be obtained, but I told him my true intentions. Of course, he naturally said he would not allow me to destroy the people that he cared for, so I said that was fine."

Pausing for a moment, Legato softly growled, saying "I brought forth all three Legendary Demons, hoping to finish off Egypt, once and for all. But the pharaoh had other plans. He did what I would never have dared to do. He called for the Egyptian God, Anubis, God of Life and Death. Surprisingly, the Egyptian God came and took up the fight. This was not part of my plan, but I continued on. Unfortunately, compared to that Egyptian God, my Legendary Demons were inferior. Anubis ended the fight quickly, and placed my Legendary Demons in slabs of stone. I was then punished as well by having my soul imprisoned within a slab of stone.

Sighing, Legato said "I was humiliated by a simple Egyptian God. I swore then that I would have my revenge."

Frowning, Marie asked "What happened to the clans? I never heard of any of those clans back when I lived in the past."

Chuckling darkly, Legato replied "You shouldn't have. The clans were destroyed for the most part. After my battle with the pharaoh, the people became fearful of the clans, thinking they would turn on Egypt. Out of fear and panic, the people turned on them."

"No…" Marie said with sadness in her voice.

"They weren't all destroyed though. The pharaoh, knowing that the people would kill the very people that had sworn to protect Egypt, saved them. Some were sent away, while some married weaker people. Others left and became nomadic riders."

"So that's how Squall's group formed." Marie murmured.

Smirking evilly, Legato continued with "Most were killed off though. Those that survived never revealed the full extent of their powers anymore."

Curious, Marie asked "You said the Kirin blood line is visible in me. Why do you say that?"

"Simple my dear. You resemble the Kirin who was the last guardian before me. She had married a low level piece of trash farmer, thus weakening the strength of her offspring." Legato said with disgust.

"But she was in love, and that's what matters! It's not about the strength of your mate!" Marie countered.

Chuckling, Legato replied "You are as foolish as her. Your power far surpasses Illidan's, yet you care for him. He is nothing compared to you. True, he is strong, but you are far superior."

Bristling with anger, Marie spat back "I love Illidan for who he is, not how strong he is! He was far stronger than me in ancient times, and even now, he is still stronger than me!"

Laughing at Marie, Legato replied "You are foolish. Can you not see how strong you are!? Your power rivals my own. Illidan's power is nothing in comparison."

Infuriated even farther, Marie fired back "Say what you want, but I'm not wrong. And neither was that Kirin."

"You'll see. You'll meet a fate much like her. She died for the sake of a weak man and feeble child that she claimed to love. Your fate will be no different due to your love for Illidan."

"Love doesn't make you weak! It makes you far stronger than you'll ever know!" Marie replied rather heatedly.

Evilly chuckling, Legato shook his head, saying "It is a foolish emotion, one made up of illusion. I learned that long ago after losing my supposed loved ones."

Shaking her head rapidly, Marie replied "You can't mean that. That woman you spoke of that was your wife, and your son, they both truly loved you, yet now you say they were foolish as well?"

"They are nothing to me now. Now I fight to fix the world." Legato coldly replied.

Balling up her fists, Marie moved into a fighting stance, saying "For all those that you betray and threaten, I will stop you. I won't let you harm the people I love anymore!"

With that said, Marie charged forward, Shadow Powers flaring. Legato managed to block her, but barely. Realizing he had no choice, Legato began firing back fists of his own, but the two were evenly matched. Neither got a hit in on the other.

This continued on for an hour before Marie realized she was slowing a bit. Trying to shake it off, she continued on, throwing fists and feet with all she had.

Suddenly, she felt her body shuttering, as if it was failing. "Not now…" she mumbled.

Knowing something was wrong, Marie attempted to fight harder, but she was slowly becoming more and more sluggish. "_This is bad. I have to finish this fast._"

Seeing her fighting hard, Legato waited for an opening. Finally, seeing her slowed reflexes, he took advantage of it and pushed her backwards into the wall. Using his Shadow Powers, he created four new shackles for her hands and feet, pinning her to the wall.

Struggling wildly, Marie screamed "LET ME GO!"

Legato only ignored her and examined her closely. Furious that he was breaking his word, Marie tried calling up her Shadow Powers, but found it difficult to concentrate.

"What the hell have you done to me!?" she screamed with anger.

Seemingly finished with his observation, Legato stoically replied "The poison has spread rapidly through your body due to the usage of your Shadow Powers."

Shocked, Marie asked "What do you mean poison!?"

"Zell poisoned you when you were captured. It was necessary to do in order to get Illidan to cooperate with us." he impassively replied.

Gasping in shock, Marie let loose her concentration, thus causing her powers to fade away. Raising an eyebrow at this, Legato scoffed, saying "So, your muddy blood can only maintain those powers for so long. No wonder Zell considered you a non-threat."

Bristling up at that comment, Marie angrily spat back "I can't help that I can't control my powers!"

Frowning, she added "I had good control over them when I was three years old, but due that I lost my memories, I lost that control. Ever since, I've struggled to maintain it."

"Your muddy blood isn't capable of holding a claim to your Kirin heritage."

Growling at the comment, Marie struggled against her bonds, yelling "Don't insult my parents!"

Ignoring her, he walked up closer to her and felt her arm. Frowning, Legato moved his hands to her stomach, making Marie let out a warning growl. Feeling it for a moment, he frowned again and finally pulled back and looked her in the face.

"Don't touch me!" Marie snapped.

Shrugging, Legato placed his hands on both of her shoulders. Closing his eyes, he called forth his Shadow Powers and began to pour energy into Marie's body. After a minute, he finished and backed away.

With a bored expression, Legato calmly said "It would be best if you did not use your Shadow Powers again. You accelerated the poison's effects by nearly two days. I don't wish for you to die before Illidan has had a chance to complete his task."

"What do you care if I die early or not!?" Marie growled out.

Turning away from her, Legato replied "I am a man of my word. What I say I will do, I do. Besides, you don't want to hurt your unborn child, now do you?"

"Huh?!" Marie squawked out with complete surprise.

Throwing his head over his shoulder, he smirked, saying "You are pregnant girl. It would be in your best interest to behave yourself."

That said, Legato walked away, leaving Marie speechless. "I'm pregnant…" she whispered in shock.

Tears slowly filled her eyes as she realized that she was no longer fighting to free herself, but her own child. "Oh little one, I'm so sorry that I put you in so much danger." she whimpered out.

More tears fell as she knew Illidan would be so worried about her when he found out that she was pregnant. Silently, she hoped to make it out alive with their child, but knew that might not happen with the poison spreading.

"Please, hang on little one. Your father will come for us, I know he will. He always does." she sobbed out.


	47. Chapter 47: Fear at Obelisk Shrine, Pt 1

**Why hello again everyone! This weekend was… hard work, lol. Friday, after work, I went to help my dad spread lime on my grandfather's farm. When I got there, him and my uncle had just started. In the end, he left me and my uncle to do it while he went to go work on something else. We finished up that night about 7, with really no problems. Saturday though… me and my other uncle went and got the equipment and brought it over to my dad's farm. Well, we began spreading the lime, only to have the tractor I was using to spread it overheat. We let it cool some, and tried again, only to have it overheat once more. Thinking about it, we put some antifreeze in and that helped a bit. Still, not long after that, it overheated again… we then got it cool enough again, but not long after beginning again, it overheated, plus the spreader stopped working… Apparently, the spreader's belts were too loose. Once we got that fixed, we tried once more with a cooled down tractor, but again, like before, it overheated, so we swapped tractors out. Things went smoothing from there till I only had part of a load to spread. Suddenly, the spreader started making a bad popping sound, and I stopped, looked down in it to find the chain that pushed the stuff out to the back was broke in two places… Arg, I had to shovel out the remains of the load, which was about a quarter of a full load. Problem is a full load is 5 ton. I shoveled out about a ton… So anyways, after all that work, we called it quits. Not to mention, I felt awful due that me and my mate were due to go to the store Saturday for groceries, but we did that yesterday instead after we visited her family. Needless to say, it's been a long weekend, lol.**

**As for how my writing is going, it's going great for **_**Another**_**, not so much for the sequel to this story. I have a few ideas for it, but eh, it's hard to get them going past that. Especially since my ideas take place later in the story… (/Sighs\) Oh well, I will try to get to it though. It will more than likely take some time for me to get it done, just so everyone knows.**

**Last time, Legato explained his past, saying he came from 6 and a half millennia back, and that he was the last guardian who used the Sacred Beasts before he betrayed Egypt with them. He soon explained that Marie has roots from that time period, and is a descendant of one of the clans known as the Kirins. Legato also made the discovery that Marie is pregnant with Illidan's child, who was shocked that she was. Can Marie and their child survive these troubling times, or will Illidan lose not only his lifetime mate and wife, but his child also?**

**Alright, time to get down to it. It's review time!**

**Knives91: Lol, nice cursing fit. Yeah, threatening a pregnant woman isn't one of the lines you shouldn't cross. Heh, I'm sure Illidan would love to kill Legato after finding out about Marie being pregnant. Thanks for the comments.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Heh, darker and darker yeah, this story seems to be, although I think **_**TWS**_** was a touch darker. After all, Marie was turned against Illidan, even though Illidan finally got through to her and saved her. But yes, read and you'll find out, lol.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Yeah, lol. Ryon, it's not me doing that to you. (/Watches guy with long blonde hair that's up in a pony tail and wearing a black robe with clouds on it appear.\) Uh, Ryon, I think someone is here to see you. (/Watches clay birds go flying towards Ryon. Falls to the ground.\) HIT THE DECK!**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Correct sir! Lol, cheater… But yes, Legato was the first person Vash purposely killed to save his friends. In fact, probably the only one really ever, lol. Yes, Marie is pregnant. Heh, true, lots of those scenes, lol. Yes, bad timing for this to happen. Heh, yeah, yet another reason to really hate Legato and Zell. Lol, that's kind of funny that Gozaburo was more merciful, but it's true too. Yes, I don't think anyone will be too heartbroken when and if Zell dies. Lol, too bad Legato's explanation shot down your forth Sacred Beast idea. Eh, I don't think the nomads are/were too disgruntled. After all, they never went to attack Egypt afterwards. As for dueling, it's coming up. Heh, the guardians, you never know who they could be. Thanks for the comments.**

**ardee: Correct on your answer as well. Man, did anyone watch the show or was I the only one, lol. Yes, Marie is pregnant. Heh, the kid will probably be powerful, without a doubt. Yeah, very typical for Legato to think love makes you weak and is foolish. Very true, it's much better than him being out to kill for love. Yes, she is stronger than Illidan, but only due to her heritage. Illidan's power is constant, whereas she has a constantly rate, but in desperate situations we catch glimpses of her true power (the power she originally had as a child). Unfortunately for Marie, she hasn't been able to fully tap into her true powers since she was a child. Yes, she has a huge reservoir, but as I said, she can't tap into it at will. In a way, Illidan really is nothing compared to her, just like he seems like nothing compared to Legato/Zell. As for the Leviathan, yeah, that was somewhat of the problem. She had lost so much of her power to it, making it incredibly powerful, but Marie helped out and combined with Illidan and Yami, they won that one. Yes, I did somewhat explain why the Sacred Beasts had the title Legendary Demons. Legato renamed them, and didn't really so much transform them. Possibly changed them from creatures that represented justice and peace to darkness and destruction. Heh, Anubis vs. the Demons would have been fun back then, especially since he apparently cleaned their clocks, lol. Thanks for the comments, and thanks for adding me as a favorite story (just saw it happen).**

**Isis the Sphinx: Thanks. I'm glad you liked the plot twist. And yeah, chapter 45 was more of a M rating, but I've seen worse in T ratings, lol. After all, you can get lemons in them, lol. Heh, yeah, Legato has a bit of honor about him. Thanks for the comments.**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Yep, Illidan is going to be a daddy, lol. LOL! (/Watches Marie growl loudly and begin to transform to full demon.\) AH HELL! (/Runs away while hearing x-knight ripped to shreds by full demon Marie.\)**

**Phew, I think I'm far away enough from her to be safe. Well, thank you all for the wonderful reviews. Also, thank you to ardee and tracefan for adding my stories to their favorites. As well, thank you Raymond Barrette for your PM. I think that is everyone. If I didn't say your name, I apologize. Heh, I'm getting forgetful anymore, lol.**

**I shall see you all once more tomorrow, so for now enjoy the chapter. (/Hears full demon Marie coming.\) GOTTA RUN!**

**Chapter 47**

The group of four silently walked through the forest with the moon shining up above them. It was already after nine as the group silently marched towards the shrines.

Looking up at the moon, Illidan lightly sighed. "_Marie, I hope you're alright._"

Turning his attention back to the others, he saw most of them were silently thinking. Alexis seemed rather calm, but he could tell she was slightly worried. Chazz was his usual self, seemingly ignoring everything and everyone, but Illidan knew on the inside he was worried for Alexis.

Glancing at Jaden, Illidan softly smirked. Nothing seemed to faze Jaden at times, but tonight seemed to have him even deep in thought. Rather than his usual carefree expression, Jaden was quiet and looking straight ahead, but his eyes looked troubled like the others.

"_They're worried. I don't blame them too much. When I was young, I was the same way._"

Seeing the small secluded area where the shrines were hid up ahead, Illidan spoke up, saying "We're almost there guys. That little area up ahead is where the shrines are hid."

Raising an eyebrow, Chazz asked "You mean all three are in the same place?"

Nodding in reply, Illidan said "Yes. All three are in the same place."

"Isn't that kind of dangerous? I mean, someone could clear them out in a single sweep." Alexis said with a frown.

Shaking his head, Illidan replied "Actually, no, they couldn't. Unless three students with a Shadow Charm each and each student was from a different dorm, then it would be pointless."

"Why make it require the Shadow Charms?" Jaden asked, finally breaking his own silence.

Slightly smiling, Illidan replied "Well, you see, I thought the Shadow Charms would remain hidden for all time. That's why I used them in the seals."

"Oh…" Jaden softly said in response.

Smiling at this action, Illidan moved the group along to the small secluded area. The three looked around upon arriving, each scratching their heads and frowning.

"Where are the shrines?" Jaden finally asked.

Lightly chuckling at Jaden and the others confusion, he waved his hand in a blank direction. Within moments, a glimmer appeared and the cloak that had hid one of the shrines was released, revealing a blue looking shrine doorway. A small stone carving on a slab was visibly seen holding the image of the Egyptian God known as Obelisk the Tormentor at the top of it.

The group was lightly shocked, with Alexis murmuring "So that's it…"

"Yes, that's it." Illidan softly replied with a smile.

Walking up to the door, he said "Alexis, only you can open this door."

"Ok…" she replied skeptically as she approached.

Pulling out her Shadow Charm, a mask, she walked up to the door and lightly touched it. Instantly, the stone slab carving glowed golden, and the door clicked. Slowly, the door slid open, revealing a shaft. Musty air came billowing out, making each wrinkle up their noses.

"Man, the air reeks." Chazz stated.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan replied "Well, it has been sealed up for nearly ten years. The air was bound to grow stale or musty."

Unsure of what to do, Alexis glanced down the tunnel, and asked "Is that the way?"

"Yes, it is. Once we're in, the door will shut, but don't be afraid." Illidan commented as he began leading the way into the darkness.

The others quickly followed. They soon heard the door slide shut, and watched in amazement as torches along the wall lit up one by one.

Acting like nothing had happened, Illidan pressed forward, prompting the others to quickly follow him into the tunnel.

After a few minutes of walking, the group came into a large circular room. The room had torches along the side of the room, but the ceiling was hard to see.

Looking around, Jaden frowned, asking "Where is the guardian? Or for that matter, where is the Egyptian God Card?"

Without warning, Jaden's question was answered by a loud roar. From the ceiling came swooping in a large black dragon with an orange mane. It's massive black wings beat towards the ground, sending dust flying, as it spun from it's position and came back in, landing straight in front of the group and letting out yet another loud roar.

All but Illidan backed up in fear quickly. Seeing Illidan standing there, the dragon roared even louder at him, trying to strike fear into him, but Illidan stood his ground.

Seeing no fear in Illidan, the dragon moved closer and began sniffing him. Afraid for Illidan, Alexis cried out "Professor, get out of there!"

Ignoring Alexis, Illidan stood still, letting the dragon breathe in his scent. After a moment, the dragon let out a soft cooing sound and laid his head down in front of Illidan.

Smiling, Illidan patted the dragon's head, lightly running his fingers through the orange mane. "Hello old friend."

Shocking everyone, the dragon spoke, saying "Master Illidan, you have returned."

"It can talk!?" Chazz sputtered.

"Wow…" Jaden added, in shock as well.

"Hard to believe…" Alexis said with shock on her face also.

Lightly chuckling at their words, Illidan continued to rub the dragon's head, saying "It has been a long time, hasn't it old friend."

"Yes, about ten years I'd guess." the dragon responded kindly.

Softly smiling, Illidan said "I see you're still trying your fear tactic on your opponents."

"You are the only human to never be afraid of me. If not for that, it would be perfected."

Chuckling, Illidan lightly patted him on the head and turned to the others. "Guys, I'd like to introduce you to the guardian of the Obelisk Shrine. This is Chaos Emperor Dragon – Envoy of the End."

Thinking for a moment, Jaden asked "Isn't that a card?"

"It is Jaden, but this dragon is no card. It is a Duel Spirit that has been with me since ancient times." Illidan responded.

"Wow, cool!" Jaden remarked with a big smile.

Standing back up, the dragon looked at Illidan and asked "Master, why have you returned? I thought you said you could never enter this cavern unless the seal was broken."

Turning back to the dragon, Illidan nodded, saying "You're right. I had hoped to never need to break the seal, but unfortunately, fate isn't so kind. Marie is in trouble, and I needed to break the seal to save her."

Growling, the dragon roared fiercely, angrily asking "What scoundrel would dare place your mate in danger!?"

Looking at the ground, Illidan softly replied with a tint of sadness in his voice "One that is too strong for myself to handle."

Sighing, Illidan then looked back up, saying "But that doesn't matter right now. For now, we need Obelisk the Tormentor."

Softly growling, the dragon looked down at Illidan, saying with some regret in his voice "I'm very sorry Master, but even you know I cannot give you the card unless all the seal's requirements are met. Besides, even though you are here, I cannot duel you for the card."

"I know. That is why someone is here to duel you for it." Illidan quickly replied.

Motioning to Alexis to step forward, she carefully moved alongside of Illidan. "This is your opponent."

The dragon let loose a mighty laughing roar, yelling "You can't be serious! You're having me duel a mortal female for this card!?"

Bristling up with anger, Alexis stepped forward and placed her hands on her hips, yelling "This mortal female will kick your butt!"

"Fool, you are nothing." the dragon retorted.

Infuriated even further, Alexis snapped back "I'll put you in your place! No stupid dragon will tell me what I can and can't be!"

"Stupid!? You little fool, I was fighting alongside of Master Illidan millennia ago when you were even a mere thought! You cannot beat me!"

"Enough!" Illidan yelled.

Both the dragon and Alexis glared at one another, making Alexis lash out with "I challenge you to a duel for that Egyptian God Card! I will win it from you!"

Snorting, the dragon replied "Very well, but don't blame me when you lose."

Backing up, the dragon took up a position and stood on it's two legs, making Alexis move till she'd finally straight across from him.

"Alexis." Illidan called out.

Looking at him, Alexis acknowledged him, making Illidan say "Be careful. This duel is a Shadow Game, which means the monsters are real. You could be hurt for real, so be cautious."

Nodding, Alexis turned her attention back to the dragon. The dragon only glared at her, and said "Girl, I will now tell you the rules. This is a Shadow Game, like Master Illidan stated, to determine the possession of Obelisk the Tormentor. If you win this duel, you shall earn the card from me. Lose though, and you not only lose your Shadow Charm, but also your soul. Do you understand what is at stake?"

"I do, and I won't lose!" Alexis quickly snapped back.

"Very well, I warned you at the least."

The room seemed to turn even darker as Shadow Magic began to fill the air. Alexis's Duel Disk activated, while a pile of cards appeared on the dragon's side of the field. In unison, the pair called out "Duel!"

Each drew five cards, with the dragon's five cards being large and facing him vertically in front of his body. "I shall begin." he grunted out.

A sixth card appeared in front of his body, making him lightly chuckle. "This shall be a rather short duel. I begin with the spell Pot of Greed. With this, I'm allowed to pick up two new cards."

A green pot with an evil smirk on it appeared on the field only to shatter when two new cards appeared in front of the dragon.

"Next, I activate the spell card Graceful Charity. Thanks to this card, I can now pick up another three cards, but I must send two from my hand when I finish."

Three new cards appeared on the dragon's field in front of his body. After a moment of deciding, the dragon said "I send these two, my Golem Sentry and Guardian Statue, to my Graveyard. Next, I send from my hand the three Magnet Warriors, Alpha (1400/1700), Beta (1700/1600), and Gamma (1500/1800) to my Graveyard in order to special summon from my hand Valkyrion the Magna Warrior (3500/3850)!"

Three magnet shaped creatures appeared onto the field, each letting off of soft moan. There was a grey one with a shield and sword, a yellow one with magnet hands, and finally a pink one with wings. Together, the three leapt into the air. Slowly, each began to break apart into many pieces. The pieces slowly reformed into one body. A large creature with many components from the previous three was build in the place of the three. It had a massive sword, a large body frame, pink wings, and many other pieces from the three previous creatures. Swinging it's sword in a sweeping motion, the new creature let out a low moan, showing it's strength.

"No way, he summoned that strong a monster this early in the game!" Chazz said in disbelief.

Looking at Alexis with worry, Jaden softly whispered "Alexis…"

"_Stay strong Alexis._" Illidan silently thought in his mind.

On the field, the dragon let out a roaring laugh, saying "I'm far from done with you yet girl. I now activate Valkyrion's special ability. By sacrificing him, I can bring back the three Magnet Warriors, Alpha (1400/1700), Beta (1700/1600), and Gamma (1500/1800) to the field!"

The large magnet creature let out a low moan as it suddenly glowed. From the blinding light, three new lights flashed onto the field, taking form of the three previous magnet creatures.

"But why would he give up a great monster for those three weaklings?" Chazz asked in confusion.

Jaden only pondered it too, saying "Maybe he liked those three better…"

"You dork, that's no excuse!" Chazz snapped.

Looking at the three monsters, Illidan himself pondered the reasoning. "_Why bring those three back? Unless… OH NO!!!_"

"ALEXIS, WATCH OUT!" Illidan yelled with worry ringing in his voice.

Glancing over her shoulder at Illidan, Alexis asked "What's wrong?"

"You're about to see girl." the dragon called out, bringing Alexis's attention back to him. Chuckling darkly, the dragon roared, saying "Time to show you how bleak your future is! I sacrifice all three of my monsters…"

"No way, not now!" Chazz cried out with worry.

"He can't!" Jaden added.

"He is…" Illidan solemnly said.

The three monsters on the field glowed brightly as they vanished. "… to summon my Egyptian God Card. Now, I summon you Obelisk the Tormentor (4000/4000)!"

The room seemed to darken even more than before upon the dragon's declaration. A blinding blue light began filling the room suddenly, and slowly up from the ground rose a powerful, large blue monster. It had powerful large arms, gigantic wings, and powerful legs. The creature let out a muffled roar, making the room vibrate.

Alexis took a step back in fear and shock, saying "He already summoned it…"

"Foolish girl, I warned you not to duel me! Now you will face the wrath of an Egyptian God Card!" roared the dragon with a growl. "I place one card face down to end my move." (CED 8000, Alexis 8000)

Jaden and Chazz looked upon the mighty blue creature before them in complete shock. "It's just like they described it…" Jaden mumbled.

"No way, it can't be. Alexis…" Chazz whispered with fear spilling out in his voice.

Looking away from the enormous blue monster, Illidan glanced down at Alexis. He could see the fear pouring off of her. Sweat had formed on the sides of her face, and her eyes were filled with terror.

Hoping to help her, he yelled "Alexis, stay strong! You can do this, I know you can."

Alexis glanced at him and softly nodded her head. Taking a deep breath, she turned to the dragon and magnificent blue monster. Once more, she took a deep breath and closed her eyes, trying hard to suppress her fear.

Finally ready, she reopened her eyes and drew her card, yelling "I'm not going to let an overgrown salamander frighten me!"

Infuriated by the comment, the dragon roared loudly, saying "You talk tough, but how tough are you? You are a frail human, far too weak to beat an Egyptian God!"

"We'll see!" Alexis replied with a challenging voice. Looking at her card, she slapped it to her Duel Disk, saying "I summon Cyber Tutu (1000/800)!"

A young woman with shoulder length pink hair, a set of clear goggle like glasses, a red and white skin tight body suit, a white tutu, and a pair of light pink slippers appeared on the field with a small twirl.

Seeing this, the dragon laughed loudly, saying "That pathetic creature is nowhere near strong enough to defeat my Egyptian God Card. I knew you were weak, but I didn't know you were this foolish!"

"Can it." Alexis sharply replied.

"You have some nerve!" the dragon growled out.

Smirking, Alexis responded with "Sure do. Now, I activate Cyber Tutu's effect. Since she's far weaker than your Egyptian God, she can play a little sweet chin music for you. Go, direct attack with Pounding Pirouette!"

Nodding, the small dancer leapt into the air past the blue creature. She soon began spinning rapidly and stuck out her left leg. Moving closer, she struck the black dragon in the jaw, making it shrink back a bit in pain.

"Why you little…" the dragon seethed.

Smirking once more, Alexis gloated, saying "Not bad for a mere mortal girl, eh?"

The dragon only ground it's teeth together and let out a small growl if irritation. Ignoring it, Alexis continued on, saying "I place these two cards face down. That'll be it for me." (CED 7000, Alexis 8000)

As a bit of sweat ran down his face, Jaden slightly smiled, saying "Nice move Lex!"

"You can do it Alexis." Chazz added.

Lightly smirking at the battle, Illidan silently said in his mind "_Not bad. She managed to find a way to punch through his defenses. Of course, Chaos Emperor Dragon won't stand for that for very long._"

Angrily roaring, the dragon glared down at Alexis, roughly saying "You will not make a fool of me!"

A new card image appeared in front of the dragon, but it seemed to not care. "I activate my trap card, Call of the Haunted! With this, I can raise Valkyrion the Magna Warrior (3500/3850) from my Graveyard to the field!"

With a flash of light, the metallic warrior reappeared onto the field and took up a fighting pose. It let out a small moan, showing it was truly ready to battle.

"He won't be staying long though. I use his effect once again, bringing back the three Magnet Warrior, so return Alpha (1400/1700), Beta (1700/1600), and Gamma (1500/1800) in defense!"

The large metallic warrior let out a small groan as it began to glow. From the glow came three beams of light, which formed the grey, yellow, and pink magnet creatures. Each took a knee, with the pink and yellow ones crossing their arms while the grey one took up a defensive stance with it's shield and sword.

Confusion crossed Chazz's face as he stared at the three new monsters. "Why bring them back again? He needed them last time for summoning Obelisk, but why now?"

Pondering Chazz's words, Jaden suddenly realized the reason. "OH NO, ALEXIS, WATCH OUT!"

"What is it you dork?" Chazz roughly asked.

Growling softly, Jaden replied hurriedly with "Don't you remember anything from class?! When you make a double sacrifice to Obelisk, it's power increases!"

Memories of Jaden's words quickly filled Chazz's mind, causing him to gasp in shock and turn with great worry to Alexis. "No way, she'll be squashed!"

"I know…" Jaden growled out.

"_Hang on Alexis. This duel isn't over. You just have to hang on, for Marie and the world's fate depends on you._" Illidan silently thought.

Chuckling at Alexis, the dragon boasted "You are finished! I activate Obelisk the Tormentor's greatest effect! By sacrificing my Alpha and Gamma the Magnet Warriors, his attack is now increased to infinity!"

The blue creature reached out and took hold of both the weaker magnet creatures. Holding one in each hand, his hands began to glow white as the creatures were dissolved. Within seconds, both monsters were gone, leaving a powerful blue creature with brightly glowing red eyes. In moments, the creature's body began to glow with red light as his skin changed from blue to red. With a mighty roar, the creature glared at Alexis.

Fear covered Alexis's face as she stared into the face of an unstoppable monster. Her mouth was agape, and all she could think of was running away.

Forcing those thoughts away, she stood her ground, trying hard to not show her fear of the powerful monster.

"Let's see how mighty you are now girl! Obelisk, finish this with Fist of Fury!" declared the dragon.

Bringing both fists up directly in front of his body, the red creatures fists began to glow bright red. Energy formed at the fists, each swirling. With deadly precision, the red creature released his twin blasts, which swirled into one large blast. The blast immediately slammed into the small pink haired young woman who didn't even have time to scream. She was disintegrated within a second, leaving no trace of her body. The blast only continued on, with Alexis in it's path.

"**ALEXIS!**" screamed Chazz and Jaden simultaneously.

"No, not like that…" Illidan mumbled with fear on his face.

Seeing the blast coming, Alexis finally shook off her fear and called out "I'm not going down that easily! I activate my trap…"

Laughing, the dragon interrupted with "You fool, spell and trap cards cannot stop an Egyptian God Card."

Smirking, Alexis replied "Maybe so, but I can affect the damage I'd receive! I activate Hallowed Life Barrier! With this, I can discard a card from my hand, allowing me to reduce all damage I'd receive this turn to zero!"

Picking a card from her hand, Alexis dumped the card into her Graveyard Slot. Once it was in, a blue shimmering barrier appeared three feet away from her.

"Fool, that trap won't be able to hold up against Obelisk's fury!" the dragon retorted with anger.

"We'll see." Alexis smugly replied.


	48. Chapter 48: Fear at Obelisk Shrine, Pt 2

**Hello again everyone! Well, yesterday's visit with grandpa went alright. Lol, he slept pretty much all evening. They just put him back on Ritalin the other day, but it's yet to fully kick in apparently since he has to build it up in his system. Anyways, he was good. He goes home Friday, which I'm sure he's more than ready for. He's been away since the end of August, which was a little over 2 months ago. I just hope my grandmother can handle him being home.**

**Well, today's chapters are dedicated to both ardee and Metal Overlord 2.0 since they answered the question about who Legato was. Legato is indeed from **_**Trigun**_**, and was the leader of the Gung-Ho Guns. So, in honor the pair that got this right, this chapter is dedicated to both of you. Thank you once more for answering it.**

**Eh, as for my progress on my other stories, **_**Another**_** seems to be all I can work on till I get a good starting point for the sequel to **_**FG**_**. I have one, but it's just getting it started… (/Sighs\) Maybe 2 stories at once was a bad idea, lol. Oh well…**

**Last time, Illidan led the group of three (Jaden, Chazz, and Alexis) to the Obelisk Shrine, in which they discovered the guardian was none other than a monster that once served Illidan; Chaos Emperor Dragon – Envoy of the End. Now Alexis must duel this Duel Spirit in order to claim hold on Obelisk the Tormentor, but not before facing it in her duel. Can she survive Obelisk's fury, or will Alexis fall trying to help?**

**Alright, time for my favorite part of the morning! (/Cranks up Bleach OST.\) It's Review Time!**

**Isis the Sphinx: LOL! Yes, I know, the dragon doesn't have a Duel Disk. Heh, you know, it was hard to figure out what to do with him. I mean, making him appear human was an option, but I didn't like it. Making him have some kind of Duel Disk sucked, and then I remembered Jinzo's duel with Jaden, where he just used card holograms, so I figured that would work. Yeah, I know the feeling about it's hard to write different reviews for chapters. Eh, I don't mind if you ramble on about random things, lol. Thanks for the review.**

**Knives91: Thanks. I'm glad you liked the idea of CED dueling.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thank you. Yep, Obelisk is already out. She may pull it off, is she survives Obelisk's fury. True, if she don't, Marie and everyone else are totally doomed, lol. Thanks for the comments.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Thanks. LOL! Poor Ryon. Yes, it could get worse Ryon. Would you like to be a puppet? I think that big guy in the corner with the same clothes as the other guy would like that. (/Big guy nods eagerly.\)**

**x-knight20: Thanks. LOL! You shouldn't do things like that to poor Marie. After all, she hates it when stuff she likes is destroyed. I got her calmed down though… for now.**

**ardee: Lol, thanks. Heh, yes, the guardian for the Obelisk Shrine is a Chaos monster, but are the others for other shrines, you never know. Yeah, it's sort of what I was talking about. Illidan had his reasons for using his Duel Spirits to guard the Egyptian God Cards (explained later). But yes, it was much safer for him to entrust monsters to guard them than himself. Eh, I wrestled with what to do with CED when I wrote this duel. I thought originally to make him appear human, but that seemed somewhat dumb to me. Then I remembered Jinzo's duel with Jaden, and was like, I guess I could do it like that, so I did. Yes, I know, I kind of got Obelisk's effect wrong. I was following the anime's use of it like always, although they got it right once from what I saw. Hmm, Anubis you say? Maybe he'll be back, but you never know. Maybe Illidan got rid of him… or not, lol. Yeah, I know, odd that CED was using a Rock deck, but like you guessed, I did it for the Magnet Warrior combo, thus making it easier to summon Obelisk. I know, the Sacred Beasts aren't easy to summon. They're just very difficult to summon, not to mention, like most monsters, hard to keep safe. But that's the way the game is, lol. Thanks for the comments as always.**

**Thank you all for your reviews. I'm glad to see so many people liked this past chapter. I'm sure it kind of shocked everyone that CED was the guardian, but that was my intent, lol. Thank you all though for your comments and reviews. Without you reviews, I don't know what I'd do, lol. But thanks again. Enjoy the chapter!**

**Chapter 48**

The red swirling blast struck the barrier within seconds of Alexis making her declaration. As it struck, a large shockwave was produced, shaking the room itself. The blast continued to grind against the barrier, seemingly not ready to concede.

"She's safe!" Chazz said with relief.

Looking at the barrier, Jaden worriedly responded with "Not quite, look!"

Seeing what Jaden was looking at, Chazz slightly gasped. Cracks were forming in the barrier at the point of origin where the blast was hitting.

Looking on at the situation, Illidan silently said "_Alexis, please hang on!_"

Back on the field, Alexis watched in horror as the barrier was cracking more and more. Closing her eyes, she silently pondered "_Is this how it ends? Am I really going to lose like this?_"

"_Come on Sissy, don't give up now! Remember, fight for what you believe in. If you do that, then nothing can stop you!_"

Realizing it was her brother's words, Alexis mentally smiled. "_Thanks Atticus. I needed that._"

"_I'm fighting for too much to give up that easily. I refuse to lose this duel! Everyone is counting on me! I can't give up yet!_" she silently thought as she reopened her eyes.

The dragon was somewhat shocked by the new expression in Alexis's eyes. "_She's determined to win. The fear has vanished. This should be interesting._"

Raising her arms up, Alexis yelled out "This duel isn't over! I won't give up!"

With her new confidence, the barrier seemed to respond. The cracks that had been widening by the second suddenly stopped widening. Instead of breaking, the barrier held strong. Moments later, the blast finally subsided, leaving an intact barrier still guarding Alexis.

As the blast faded, so did the red in the large creature. Slowly, with the red receding, blue returned to the monster till finally it was totally blue once again, and it's attack points returned to normal (4000/4000).

Letting out an interested growl, the dragon simply said "I see you are stronger than I thought. Most impressive that a mortal girl could survive the fury of Obelisk the Tormentor. Perhaps you are worthy of this card, but you've yet to fully prove that." (CED 7000, Alexis 8000)

Smirking at that declaration, Alexis drew her next card, saying "I'm not afraid of you anymore. I was a bit at first, but now I see I have nothing to fear. Now I'm ready to show you what I can really do!"

Looking at her new card, her lips curved upwards. Turning her attention back to the battle, Alexis called out "I activate my trap, Call of the Haunted, so let me reintroduce you to my old friend, Cyber Tutu (1000/800)!"

The young woman with shoulder length pink hair reappeared onto the field and made a small twirl to display her skills.

"Cyber Tutu, attack him directly with Pounding Pirouette!"

Launching herself into the air, the young ballerina began to spin rapidly. As before, she bypassed the large blue monster that blocked the way and struck the black dragon in the head, making him roar out in irritation more than pain.

"I'm not through yet, for I activate the spell card Prima Light! With this, I can send my Cyber Tutu to the Graveyard and special summon from my hand my Cyber Prima (2300/1600)!"

The pink haired dancer vanished instantly and was replaced with a new female creature. She had long blonde hair with six pony tails around her face, wore a red mask, a silver skintight body suit, a small white tutu, and pairs of golden rings, with one being at her waist, coving the tutu, and the others on her wrists and shoulders.

"Cyber Prima, take out Beta the Magnet Warrior now with Pirouette Strike!"

With a small nod to her master, the blonde haired woman leapt into action. Stopping a short distance away from the yellow magnet creature, the woman began spinning rapidly. Without warning, she went crashing into the yellow magnet creature, smashing it into pieces.

"I'll lay a card face down to end. Let's see what you have dragon!" (CED 6000, Alexis 8000)

"Sweet moves Alexis!" Jaden exclaimed with a big smile.

Darkly, Chazz muttered "She's not safe yet dork. Don't forget, she's still facing an Egyptian God Card…"

"Still Chazz, you gotta admit, she's doing great!"

Illidan only shook his head at the two and stared back at the duel. "_Careful Alexis, for I highly doubt Chaos Emperor Dragon will allow this to continue._"

A new card appeared in front of the powerful dragon, making it roar out "You will fall! Obelisk, attack her monster now with Fist of Fate!"

Letting out a roar, the powerful blue monster pulled back his large fist. Taking a step forward, the creature sent his fist flying towards the blonde haired monster, which seemed somewhat afraid.

"Not quite! I activate my trap, Doble Passe! Thanks to this trap, you can attack me directly!" declared Alexis.

The dragon, along with Illidan, Chazz, and Jaden all looked in shock at Alexis, pondering what she was doing.

"Alexis, that's crazy! You'll get hit head on!" Jaden cried out with great worry in his voice.

"DON'T DO IT ALEXIS!" Chazz added with the same amount of concern.

Taking a moment to ponder the decision, the dragon finally roared back "Fool! You will lose like that! Obelisk, direct attack her!"

The blonde haired monster looked back at Alexis as she leapt out of the way. Her eyes were filled with worry and great concern, but obeyed her orders.

Seconds later, the blue creature launched his fist forward. Small swirls of energy could be seen around the creature's fist. With ease, it struck Alexis, causing her to scream out in pain. The force of the hit knocked her backwards into the air about ten feet. She came crashing down hard onto the ground on her back. There she laid still, seemingly never to move again.

"ALEXIS!" Jaden screamed. Seeing she wasn't going to move, he ran towards her. Chazz quickly joined him, knowing Alexis was in serious trouble.

Nearing her, they each heard the dragon roar, saying "Leave that girl be. If you interfere, her soul is lost automatically to me."

Growling with fury flashing in his eyes, Jaden yelled "CAN'T YOU SEE SHE'S HURT!?"

Seemingly smirking, the dragon replied "I can, but she knew the risks coming into this duel."

"WHY YOU…" Chazz snarled with anger flashing through his eyes.

Chuckling, the dragon spread it's wings, saying "I knew that mortal was weak, but she foolishly allowed my Egyptian God to direct attack her. For that, she has paid the ultimate price, and will now lose by default. It's a shame, she was making things interesting to say the least."

"It's … not… over…" called out a raspy voice.

Everyone's attention suddenly turned to Alexis, who was weakly sitting up. A trickle of blood was coming from the corner of her mouth, and she had a few cuts and bruises on her body. With pain flushing over her face as she stood up, she slowly walked forward towards the spot where she had been standing before she was hit.

With labored breaths, she said "I'm… not done… yet. My trap, it… it has a second… effect. I can now dire… direct attack y… you with … Cyber Prima! Do it…"

Looking at her master, the blonde haired warrior smiled and turned her attention to the dragon. Leaping into the air, she rushed past the large blue creature and began to spin. With tremendous force, she throttled her foot into the dragon's head, making it howl out in pain.

With her creature landing back on her side of the field, Alexis softly smirked, saying "See, I'm not… done with… you ye… yet."

Softly growling, the dragon silently thought of the girl staring determinedly at him. "_She is an impressive mortal. To survive a direct attack from an Egyptian God, that is impressive. I ponder what else she is capable of._"

Tuning back into the duel, the dragon snorted and said "I shall end my turn." (CED 3700, Alexis 4000)

Letting out a sigh of relief, Illidan glanced at Alexis. Her body had multiple cuts, plus she had several bruises forming. Not to mention, her uniform was ripping in a few places. "_To be able to take a direct shot from an Egyptian God and be able to stand back up, that takes guts. Alexis, I know you're tough, but how long can you hold out? I hope long enough to win this duel._"

Taking a deep breath, Alexis drew her next card and frowned. "I play the spell Stray Lambs, which lets me special summon two Lamb Tokens (0/0) in defense."

A white and pink set of round goat creatures materialized onto the field. Each had golden horns that curved inwards.

"Finally, I'll switch Cyber Prima to defense. That's it for me." (CED 3700, Alexis 4000)

With a new card image appearing in front of the dragon, it darkly chuckled. "Seems like you're running away from me now. Let's see how long you can last. I summon Rocket Jumper (1000/800)."

A rock like creature attached to the bottom of a red rocket appeared onto the field. The rocket appeared to be attached to the creatures head and back, and was already holding it in the air.

"I activate Rocket Jumper's special ability. When you have nothing but defense monsters, he can direct attack, so go! Rocket Slammer!"

The flames on the back of the rocket shot out greatly as the rocket launched in Alexis's direction. With ease, the creature went past her monsters and struck her head on, making her cry out in pain. She sank to one knee, panting heavily.

"Obelisk, decimate Cyber Prima with Fist of Fate!"

Pulling back his large fist, the blue creature stepped forward and released his fist, smashing it into the blonde haired creature. It cried out in great pain, but the pain was for only an instant, and then the creature was gone.

Smirking with satisfaction, the dragon growled out "I end." (CED 3700, Alexis 3000)

"She lost the lead…" Chazz muttered with a troubled voice.

Nodding, Jaden added "She's still there though. I know she can do it."

Drawing her next card, Alexis somewhat sighed, and said "I place a card face down. That's it." (CED 3700, Alexis 3000)

A new card appeared in front of the dragon, who let out a laugh. "Foolish mortal, did you think you could destroy an Egyptian God!?"

"I will beat you!" Alexis piped up with anger rising in her voice.

Chuckling once again, the dragon simply replied "Doubtful. Rocket Jumper, direct attack her again with Rocket Slammer!"

The flames on the back of the rocket flared out greatly as it gained altitude. Turning itself towards Alexis, it came tearing down out of the sky and slammed into her, making her scream out in pain once more. Falling to one knee, she began panting heavily. A bit of fresh blood began to leak from the corner of her mouth.

"Obelisk, destroy one of those tokens with Fist of Fate!"

With great ease, the large blue creature slammed it's fist into the white goat creature, shattering it immediately without a sound.

"Come now girl, stop wasting my time." (CED 3700, Alexis 2000)

Staring at the worn out figure, Jaden called out "Hang on Alexis! I know you can do this!"

Looking up at Jaden, she lightly nodded and stood up. Wiping the blood away from her lip, she glared back at the dragon and drew her card. Seeing it, she lightly sighed, saying "I end." (CED 3700, Alexis 2000)

"Girl, you are finished! Admit your defeat!" the dragon growled out as a new card image appeared before him.

Glaring at the dragon, Alexis spat back "Never!"

"Have it your way. Rocket Jumper, knock some more sense into her with a direct attack!"

Launching up into the air, the creature reached it's maximum height and then began plummeting down towards Alexis. Crossing her arms in defense, she waited for the hit, which came soon enough. The hit once more knocked into her hard, making more blood flow down from the corner of her mouth. She fell to one knee, but then collapsed face down.

"ALEXIS!" screamed Jaden and Chazz in unison.

"Obelisk, finish off her last monster with Fist of Fate!"

Without hesitation, the large blue creature struck the final goat creature with it's fist, smashing it into millions of pieces.

Staring at the girl laying on the ground, the dragon snorted, saying "I knew a weak mortal girl like you could never beat me." (CED 3700, Alexis 1000)

Seeing Alexis down, Jaden began to run to her till the dragon spoke up, saying "Remember, if you interfere, her soul is forfeit."

Grounding his teeth together, Jaden growled out "How can you do this to her!? You're killing her! Don't you care!?"

"Her fate is none of my concern. She knew the risks going in." the dragon remarked evenly.

Jaden was about to angrily reply when he saw Alexis moving. "Alexis!"

Slowly, she raised her body up off the ground with her head down. Gasping in pain as she fully stood up, Alexis finally looked up at the dragon with her piercing tan colored eyes.

Wiping a bit of blood off her lip, she yelled out "This weak human girl is far from done! My move!"

Picking up her next card, Alexis looked at it and smirked. "It's time I wrap this duel up. I play the spell Graceful Charity! With this, I get to draw three new cards, but have to send two to my Graveyard when I'm done."

Drawing three new cards, she finally picked two and placed them in her Graveyard Slot. Once the cards had slid in, she pointed to her face down card, saying "I activate the trap Disgraceful Charity, allowing me to now recover those two cards I just got rid of."

Slowly, the two cards slid back out of the Graveyard Slot and into Alexis's waiting hand. Picking another card from her hand, she called out "I next play the spell Pot of Greed, which means another two cards for me!"

With a quick motion, she picked up two new cards and smiled. "This duel just isn't your duel. I activate the spell card Polymerization! With this, I can fuse together Etoile Cyber (1200/1600) and Blade Skater (1400/1500) to form Cyber Blader (2100/800)!"

A woman with blue skin, butt length chestnut colored hair, a red body suit with a white tutu and white flowing ribbon on her hands and a red eye patch appeared. Beside of her, a purple skinned woman with some lighter purple blotches formed. She had no hair, and had two long blades on the underside of her arms, and a pair of ice skates on.

The two began to swirl together till a blinding light formed. From the light came a new woman with long calf length blue hair, who had pink, dark purple, and light purple skin and a skin tight body suit. She had a small tutu on like one of the previous monsters, and had a pair of purple ice skates. On her shoulders was a pink spike that was as tall as her head. Her eyes were covered by a pink pair of glasses that were not transparent to people looking at her.

"Sweet move Alexis!" Jaden cheered. Chazz slightly smirked, but still worriedly watched.

"My new monster maybe a pretty face, but there is more to her than that, but more on that in a minute. Next, I activate the spell card Pot of Avarice. With this card, I can send five monsters from my Graveyard to my deck, and then draw two new cards. I'll send Cyber Tutu, Cyber Gymnast, Cyber Prima, Etoile Cyber, and Blade Skater all to my deck."

Slowly, all five monsters slid out of Alexis's Graveyard Slot. Once all were out, she picked them up and placed them in her deck, and shuffled. Finishing up, she picked up two new cards and smirked.

"This duel is over."

"It's only over when I win!" roared the dragon with some anger in his voice.

Smirking again, Alexis replied "You're wrong. I play the equip spell card Fusion Weapon, and use it on my Cyber Blader!"

A red weapon that had a claw like design attached itself to the blue haired monster, who took the time to bring it into an offensive position.

"With this equipped, my Cyber Blader's points grow by 1500 (2100 + 1500 3600/800 + 1500 2300)!"

Chuckling darkly, the dragon replied "It does little good to you. Obelisk is still stronger!"

Nodding, Alexis replied "Maybe so, but not for long. I play another spell card called Double Attack! By discarding a monster from my hand, I can choose a monster on my field. If the card I discard had more stars than the monster I chose, the one I chose can attack twice this turn! So, I'll send my Cyber Angel Dakini (2700/2400) to my Graveyard, which has eight stars, so more than enough to allow Cyber Blader to attack twice this turn!"

When Alexis placed the monster in her Graveyard slot, the blue haired monster glowed a bit, showing her new abilities.

"That was foolish. Obelisk is too strong, yet you waste your cards." the dragon bragged.

Smirking, Alexis shook her head, saying "Not really. Remember, I told you I'd mention my Cyber Blader's special ability? Well, it's time I tell you! Pending on how many monsters you have out is what her ability is. When you have one out, she can't be destroyed due to battle. If you have two out, her attack points double. Finally, if you have three out, she negates all monster, spell, and trap effects. Guess what, you have two monsters out, meaning her points are doubled (5700/2300)!"

The dragon only roared as he watched the blue haired woman's strength double. "_I've underestimated her desire to beat me. Hmm, perhaps it is for the best…_"

Looking at the girl, the dragon softly said "Do it."

"As you wish! Cyber Blader, attack Obelisk the Tormentor with Skating Blade Slash!"

Nodding to her master, the monster skated forward with great speed. Leaping into the air, the monster kicked the mighty blue creature in the chest, making it howl in pain. As the blue haired woman dropped away, there was a visible gash seen where she had struck the powerful creature. The mighty monster then began to glow brightly as it howled loudly, and finally exploded, sending out a thunderous shockwave and a large plume of smoke.

Once the smoke cleared, it was obvious the blue monster was gone. The group only gawked at the view in the wake of the loss of the mighty monster.

"She… she actually did it!" a shocked Chazz muttered.

Grinning widely at Alexis, Jaden yelled out excitedly "You've done it!"

Keeping her attention on the dragon, Alexis said "Since you only have one monster now, my Cyber Blader's effect changes. She no longer has double the points, but can't be destroyed due to battle (5700 – 2100 3600/2300). Still, she has plenty of fight left in her!"

Seeing that the end was coming, the dragon softly sighed, saying "Yes, it's over. Even I can see that. Come mortal, finish this duel."

Nodding, Alexis remarked "Very well. Cyber Blader, attack Rocket Jumper with Skating Blade Slash!"

Rushing forward on her skates, the blue haired monster leapt into the air and came crashing down onto the red rocket creature with her skates. The creature couldn't hold it's own and was easily crushed, sending a blast back at the dragon.

His life points quickly dissipated, leaving him with zero, causing the card images that were in front of him to vanish and Alexis's Duel Disk to power down. Falling to all four legs, the dragon pulled it's wings back in and slowly walked forward towards Alexis.

She stood her ground, showing no fear. Slightly chuckling, the dragon kindly said "Well met girl. I see now you are worthy of owning this card. It is yours."

Standing up slightly, the dragon pointed at the girl's hand. Slowly, a bright light formed in her left hand. Shocked, Alexis stared at it curiously, not knowing what was forming. The light slowly transformed into a rectangular shape. Finally, the light died down, revealing a card in Alexis's hand.

Flipping the card over, Alexis slightly gasped at it. "It's… it's Obelisk the Tormentor!" she said in shock.

"Yes. You now possess the Egyptian God Card. I admit I was wrong about you. You're no weak mortal woman. The strength you displayed, it was greater than I thought it was possible. I apologize for my foolishness."

Staring the dragon in the face, Alexis softly smiled and patted him on the head, saying "It's alright. Thank you, I'll make sure to use this card wisely."

Turning to Illidan, the dragon asked "Master, what will happen to me now?"

Softly smiling, Illidan said "You will continue to journey with me. I have need of you once again. After all, we have to save Marie."

Chuckling, the dragon asked "Why does it seem we're always rescuing her?"

"Because, she gets into the worst situations ever." Illidan replied with a small laugh.

Becoming serious, he added "But I truly need your help. Will you once again fight by my side?"

"It would be an honor Master." the dragon replied with a humble growl.

Glowing brightly, the dragon turned into a small sphere of light. It floated in front of Illidan for a few moments while Illidan dug into his back pocket. Pulling out a card, he held it towards the sphere, which floated into it. The card glowed for a moment till finally the light died down. With the dying light, an image of a black dragon became visible on the card where a white square had once been.

Seeing this happen, Jaden asked "So, that dragon, it was a card of yours?"

"Yes." Illidan simply replied. "I've had this card for a long time, but ten years ago, when I built this shrine, I used it to place the Duel Spirit as a guardian here."

Looking up at the ceiling, Illidan added "Each time a guardian is beat, I will bring them back, and together, with their help, we will save Marie."

"Yeah..." Jaden said with a smile.

Turning to Alexis, Illidan softly smiled, saying "Well done. Alexis, thanks to you, we're one step closer to putting an end to Zell's evil. Thank you."


	49. Chapter 49: Icy Memories, Pt 1

**Hello everybody! (/Hears someone say "Hi Doctor Nick!"\) Lol, not much new really in life, so I'll skip this part.**

**Writing wise, man, I'm really getting into it on **_**Another**_**, but I know I need to write down some more ideas on the next sequel to this. I will warn everyone right now, it maybe a short time period before I post anything on the sequel to **_**FG**_**. If I don't start getting some ideas, eh, I don't know what I'll do. (/Sighs\) Maybe I'm being too overambitious on trying to do 2 stories at once. Both have fuzzy outlines, well, **_**Another **_**has a better outline since I've got a lot of it wrote, lol, but the other has nearly nothing, other than a few stray ideas. And I've yet to name the damn thing! Eh, oh well, I always have trouble naming stuff, lol.**

**Last time, Alexis won her duel against CED, allowing her to gain the first Egyptian God Card, Obelisk the Tormentor. Afterwards, CED returned to Illidan's deck in order to help him fight to reclaim Marie. Now that the first Egyptian God Card has been collected, which is next?**

**Alright, time to move onto the best part of this review session! The actual reviews!**

**Knives91: Thanks. Lol, yes, Alexis's deck is somewhat tricky to work with. It requires certain conditions, and those conditions are hard to come by at times. But yes, once you out certain monsters in her deck, she is kind of dead in the water, but what deck isn't, lol.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Is Ra next, eh, don't know. Lol, I know that's cruel. But yes, beating Obelisk was an impressive win for Alexis. Heh, Chazz vs. Ra, that could be fun. Very true, the one turn kill that Marik used could come into play, but you never know.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Thanks. Yep, Alexis and the ballerinas pummeled poor CED in the end. Eh, it was somewhat short, but I thought I'd make it sort of that way. Later duels got extremely long, and I so missed these short duels, lol. But yes, it would have been more fun to see what CED had in that deck, but oh well, too little too late. Yeah, I thought of prolonging the duel, but I didn't. It seemed to flow into a shorter duel, so I left it as is. No prob about the props. You deserved them for guessing right. But yes, every guardian that is defeated shall/may return to Illidan's deck. Eh, I don't know about an overhaul. Lol, it may or may not get a fix up. Thanks for the comments as always.**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Cool that you have both. I have them also. Actually, I have the whole Invasion of Chaos (IOC) set. It took so long to collect… The hilarious thing was, I got BLS-EOTB, DMOC, and a few other really rare cards on the same day, but had to wait forever to get CED… Oh well, I got it eventually, it just took a while and some money…**

**ardee: Thanks. Well, she has it in her deck now. Will Alexis use Obelisk though, or can she, is yet to be determined. But yes, the group deserves to have the cards once they go through the torture of a Shadow Game to get it. Thanks about CED's stream of insults on Alexis. Yeah, I thought about how the dragon might act, and I kind of incorporated that into it's character. Thanks about the winning combo. I think it worked well, and it did prove why she's an Obelisk Blue. Yeah, it kind of sucks that the GX writers made Obelisk the top dog, followed by Ra and finally Slifer. Really, it should have been Ra, Slifer, then Obelisk. But then again, Kaiba, being the egocentric manic that he was, probably fixed the order, thinking his former card was far superior to Ra and Slifer. Heh, probably put Slifer last due that Yugi had it and he always loathed losing to Yugi, so what better way than to repay him in his mind than make him dead last. Eh, the original cast making appearances, I don't know. I mean, they were there before for Christmas… Heh, more than likely, most of them would be running around screaming for help (Joey, lol).**

**Well, that's it for now. Thank you all for the reviews once more. Heh, it's always fun reading through them and attempting to answer them without killing the plot, lol. But thank you all again. Without your reviews, things would be rather boring, plus I'd run out of ideas. Thanks again to everyone for the reviews. I hope you all enjoy this chapter. Till next time, enjoy!**

**Chapter 49**

The group soon began to leave the shrine, but Alexis had a noticeable limp. Noting this, Illidan realized she was a bit injured.

"_Not a surprise after a battle with an Egyptian God Card._" he mused.

"Alexis, I could carry you if you want." he suggested.

Frowning, Alexis replied "No, I'm fine."

Lightly chuckling, Illidan nodded, saying "Alright."

Soon enough, the group left the shrine. Upon leaving it, the shrine seemed to shutter and vanished.

"What happened?" Chazz asked.

Smiling, Illidan calmly replied "Since there was nothing left to protect, the shrine vanished. It served it's purpose, and now it's gone."

"Oh…" Chazz replied, unsure of the answer seemingly.

That said the group started back towards the dorms. As they came to the lake where the Obelisk Blue Dorm was located, they saw a solemn figure standing in front of it.

"Is that Namine?" Chazz asked while squinting his eyes.

Taking a closer look, Jaden replied "Yeah, it is. I wonder what she's doing out here."

Seeing the four approaching her, Namine turned towards them and revealed her Duel Disk. "I see you were successful Alexis. Well done."

Raising her eyebrow, Alexis curiously began to ask "How…" Stopping, she asked instead "What do you mean?"

"Don't play dumb with me. You maybe a blonde, but you're not dumb. I know you won the Egyptian God Card from that guardian. And now, you will give it to me." Namine stated.

Stepping to the front of the group, Illidan said "Namine, what is this about?"

Smirking, she replied with "This is about me taking that Egyptian God Card from Alexis."

"But why?" Illidan asked in protest.

"Because, my Master has need of that card. He promised to return my memories to me once I give it to him. The only way to give it to him is to take her down, so save yourself some trouble and hand over the card Alexis!" Namine demanded.

Growling irritably, Alexis snapped back "NO WAY! I worked way too hard for this card, and I'm not about to give it to you!"

"You, you're one of the students who was attacked nearly ten years ago, aren't you Namine?" Illidan asked.

Evilly smirking, Namine nodded, saying "Yes, I am. What I had taken from me was not right. Those memories were mine, and mine alone! But tonight, once I finish Alexis off and give my Master the Egyptian God Card, I will remember everything! I'll finally be free of this torment of not knowing!"

"Namine…" Illidan slowly began, but was cut off.

"GET OVER IT!" Alexis yelled, distracting everyone. "You may have lost your memories of your past, but that doesn't mean it gives you the right to do what you're talking about. You could always make new memories to fill that void."

Growling, Namine roared back "NO! Those memories are mine, and I will have them back! So prepare yourself!"

"Alexis, don't do it. You're already worn out from that Shadow Game an…" Jaden began, only to be cut off by Alexis snapping out "I accept your challenge then!"

Clenching his teeth, Chazz said "Alexis, don't. Jaden is right for once, and…"

"And nothing. If she wants to duel, then I'll duel her." Alexis interjected.

Sighing together in unison, Chazz and Jaden muttered "Alright."

"Alexis, be careful." Illidan admonished.

Glancing over her shoulder, Alexis nodded and replied "Right." Turning back to face Namine, she said "Let's do this."

Smirking evilly, Namine said "Good, you have some courage at least."

"You'll eat those words." Alexis venomously spat in return.

Each tossed their decks into their Duel Disks and took up a dueling stance. The two Duel Disks activated simultaneously, each instantly lighting up. The pair both drew five cards and said "Game on!"

"You can go first Alexis. Make sure it's a good move."

Smirking at the comment, Alexis drew her next card, saying "You may regret those words. I play the spell Stray Lambs. Thanks to this, I get to special summon two Lamb Tokens (0/0) to my field in defense."

Two round sheep creatures, one white and the other pink, appeared onto the field. Each had a set of golden horns attached to the side of their heads, and each had a small smile on their face.

"To end, I'll place this face down." (Alexis 8000, Namine 8000)

Drawing her card, Namine evilly grinned, saying "I'm sure you think my deck is the same as it always was, but you're wrong. That wasn't my true deck."

"Not your true deck!?" Chazz asked, somewhat in shock.

Chuckling darkly, Namine nodded, saying "Yes, it wasn't my true deck. That fake deck was nothing but a façade. Now witness the full power of my true deck! I start by playing the spell Sacrifice Icicle! Thanks to this little card, I have to make one of my monster card zones vanish, so I can have up to only four monsters now."

"But why do that? You're only hurting yourself…" Alexis said in confusion.

Sneering, Namine replied "Maybe so, but there is a reason. Now, on with my move since there is more to this spell card. I can now special summon a token monster known as Icicle Token (0/0)!"

A solid piece of ice in the shape of a long crystal appeared onto the field. As it sat there, cold seemed to radiate off of it.

"Oh yeah, there is something I forgot to mention Alexis. My Master, he told me to make you truly suffer, so to do that, he gave me the power to create a little game." Namine said with arrogance in her voice.

"Make me suffer?" Alexis questioned.

Chuckling, Namine darkly said "You will suffer for your insolence. Watch as this little duel now becomes a Shadow Game!"

Raising her arms up, darkness began to pour out of Namine, making Illidan pull the others back for cover. A dark translucent half sphere dome began forming around Namine and Alexis, sealing the two within a barrier.

Alexis looked around the sphere, somewhat in shock, asking "Why do this!?"

"Because I must! In order to get my memories back, I will do whatever is necessary to get them! And if that means destroying another life to get my old life back, then so be it!" Namine said with defiance in her voice.

"This isn't the way Namine! There is always another way! Stop it now before someone loses their soul!" Illidan yelled with worry in his voice.

Laughing, Namine responded with "The Master was right, you're nothing but a sentimental fool. Why he thinks you're so important, I'll never know."

Growling, Illidan roared back "There is nothing wrong with showing compassion!"

"Enough!" Alexis yelled. Glaring at Namine, she added "If she wants to lose her soul, that's her business. I won't let her stop me from helping you save Marie."

"Alexis…" Illidan murmured with a bit of surprise.

Glowering at Alexis, Namine said "Good, you accept your end. Let me fill you in on something though. One of us will lose our souls here, so know that your destination will soon be the Shadow Realm."

"I'm not afraid of you or the Shadow Realm! I will win this!" Alexis fired back heatedly.

"We'll see." Namine said with arrogance. Glancing at her cards, she smartly asked "Where was I? Ah yes, I remember. I was about to sacrifice my token! Say goodbye to my Icicle Token and hello to my Blue-Ice White Night's Dragon (3000/2500)!"

The ice creature vanished in a flash of white light and was replaced by a large white-blue dragon that looked to be made up of ice. It had a long, strong tail, powerful large wings, strong clawed hands and feet, and a large head. With a mighty roar, it made it's presence known on the field as it hovered over Namine.

"I'm not through yet, for I play the spell Quick Summon, letting me to summon another monster, so I pick my Snow Sprite (1100/700)!"

A female human like creature with blue, white, and grey armor with a strange headdress appeared onto the field and blew out a small amount of cold air.

"Thanks to my new monster's effect, all of your spell cards are useless for one turn. That means if you want to play a spell, you have to set it for a turn."

Sweat formed on Alexis's head when she heard this. "_That's not good. That means to summon a Cyber Angel or fuse monsters, I have to wait an extra turn._"

Interrupting Alexis's thoughts, Namine called out "There is more by the way. I play the spell White Night's Fort!"

The field began to freeze over, making the temperatures around the entire field drop. Behind Namine, a large structure, composed completely of ice, began forming up.

"I don't like the looks of that." Chazz commented.

Nodding in agreement, Jaden added "Yeah, me either. It can't be good."

Smirking, Namine smugly said "The effect of this card keeps us each from activating trap cards on our opponent's turn. That should be the least of your worries though. Dragon, attack her pathetic token with Ice Lightning!"

Roaring loudly, the icy dragon took aim and launched a stream of ice and lightning from it's mouth. The small pink round sheep was struck hard, shattering on contact.

"You're next Snow Sprite, so show that token your Icy Kick!"

Launching herself into the air, the sprite pulled back her leg which seemed to shine brightly. Upon reaching the small white sheep, she released her kick, smashing the creature with ease and releasing a small burst of cold air.

"I'll end with a face down. Come now Alexis, show me what you can do!" (Alexis 8000, Namine 8000)

Softly growling, Jaden called out "Come on Lex, we know you can do this!"

"Get a clue dork. She's totally outgunned." Chazz flatly stated.

Furiously turning to Chazz, Jaden replied "No, she's still got a chance!"

"Don't lose hope in her now Chazz." Illidan added as he looked on. "She has a lot to prove, and I believe in her. She'll pull through."

Frowning, Chazz silently muttered "I hope so…"

Picking up a new card, Alexis examined her hand and tried to figure out a strategy. "_With no spell cards, I have to figure out a new plan of action._"

Examining Namine's field once more, she smirked, silently figuring things out. "_I'll just smash that Snow Sprite first, then I can use all the spell cards I want. That'll work. Plus, thanks to her spell card, she can't use a trap this turn._"

Deciding on a monster, Alexis pulled it from her hand and called out "I summon Blade Skater (1400/1500)!"

A purple skinned woman with some lighter purple blotches formed onto the field. She had no hair, and had two long blades on the underside of her arms, and a pair of ice skates on.

"Go, attack her Snow Sprite now with Blade Skate Slash!"

Nodding, the woman began skating forward rapidly towards the snow creature. With only a few feet left to her target, the creature was suddenly interrupted.

Darkly chuckling, Namine called out "Not a bad idea, but a dumb one. I activate my dragon's special ability! By sacrificing a spell or trap card on my field, I can switch the target to my dragon, so I send my face down trap known as Barrel Behind the Door to the Graveyard. Now your little monster has to attack my dragon. Too bad… for you! Dragon, counter with Ice Lightning!"

Roaring loudly, the dragon moved in front of the smaller ice woman and opened it's jaws up, releasing a stream of ice and electricity. The blast struck the invading purple skinned woman at close range, making her fly backwards through the air as she cried out in pain before shattering. The remainder of the blast soon traveled towards Alexis, striking her hard.

"AHHH!" Alexis screamed out in agony. With the blast subsiding, she fell to one knee, panting hard. Fresh cuts formed from the ice shards instantly began appearing on her skin. Small drops of blood seeped from the wounds, but were not that bleeding out badly yet.

Laughing at Alexis, Namine said "Pathetic. To think, you defeated the great guardian of the Egyptian God Card. How sad you truly are!"

"LEAVE HER ALONE!" Jaden growled out.

Turning and laughing at Jaden, Namine arrogantly said "Or you'll do what? Face it, your little friend here is going to lose her soul soon. It's only a matter of time."

"You're wrong…" called out a raspy voice.

Throwing a glance back at Alexis, Namine slightly gasped to see Alexis was standing once more. Her eyes were hardened and showed fierce determination.

Alexis called out again "I won't be defeated like that! I have worked too hard to be. Plus, I have too many people counting on me to lose! So, I refuse to give up now!"

Chuckling while she turned back to face the duel, Namine replied "Very well, suffer even more then. You'll soon succumb to me though."

Determined, Alexis snapped back "We'll see. For now, I place a card face down. That's it." (Alexis 6500, Namine 8000)

"She's wide open. There's just no way she can pull it out now!" Chazz said with fear in his voice.

Staring hard at Alexis's back, Jaden answered with "A duel isn't over till the last card is played Chazz. Alexis will make it, I know it."

"It'll be a miracle if she does." Chazz darkly replied.

Staying focused on Alexis, Illidan silently called out "_Come on, hang on Alexis._"

Smirking at Alexis, Namine drew her card and said "You are so pathetic. Perhaps I should put you out of your misery."

Pausing for a moment, she evilly smirked and added "No, I think I'll make you suffer a little longer. At least then you'll know a bit about how long I've suffered without my memories."

"Dragon, direct attack her with Ice Lightning!" ordered Namine while pointing at Alexis.

With a roar, the dragon threw back it's head, energy seemingly brimming from it's jaws. Throwing it back forward, the dragon opened it's jaws, releasing ice and lightning. The bolts and ice struck Alexis hard, making her cry out in pain once more. Once the blast was over, she fell to her knees, panting heavily. Fresh blood began to drip from her wounds.

"ALEXIS!" Jaden screamed as he rushed towards her. He smashed straight into the black barrier and was repelled, but that didn't stop him. Time after time, he smashed into the barrier, trying to break through.

"HANG ON, I'M COMING!" he yelled as he smashed into the barrier again.

Walking over to Jaden, Illidan put his arms around the young man and held him back, causing Jaden to fight back. "LET ME GO ILLIDAN! I HAVE TO HELP HER!"

Holding on tightly, Illidan replied flatly "Stop this. You won't be able to help her if you keep this up. Alexis will make it. I know it."

"But…"

"No buts Jaden! She has to do this on her own, but that doesn't mean we can't root for her." Illidan strictly said.

Sighing, Jaden settled and Illidan let go of him. Looking back up, Jaden saw Alexis standing back up. "That's it Alexis, you can do it!" he cheered.

Standing back up on trembling legs, Alexis spat some blood out of her mouth to the ground. Wiping her mouth, she grinned and mockingly asked "Is that all you have?"

Growling at Alexis's arrogance, Namine called out "Snow Sprite, remind Miss Rhodes of her place!"

Leaping to the air, the snow creature's leg began glowing shinny. With little effort, she delivered a fierce kick to Alexis in the ribs, making Alexis fall to her knees once more and caused her to spit up more blood.

Slowly, Alexis wiped her mouth off again and stood back up. "Fin… ished?" she asked with a ragged breath.

Frustrated, Namine yelled "You will pay for your insolence! I place a face down card and end!" (Alexis 2400, Namine 8000)

Seeing Alexis swaying a bit, Illidan realized she was nearly exhausted. "_She won't last much longer. That last Shadow Game took a lot of her strength, and then there are her injuries from this duel. She's losing too much blood, plus she's nearly exhausted. Come on Alexis, stay strong. I know you can win this._"

With great effort, Alexis drew her card and softly smirked. Glaring at her, Namine roared "What are you smirking about!?"

"What I have planned for you." Alexis simply replied. Slapping a monster card to her Duel Disk, she called out "I summon Cyber Gymnast (800/1800) to the field!"

A muscular woman with long blonde hair bound in a pony tail with a white mask on her face, a black and purple body suit that covered all of her body but her arms, and a small white tutu appeared onto the field. She flexed her muscles a bit, showing her incredible strength.

Smirking slightly, Alexis said "By sending a card from my hand to my Graveyard, I can destroy a monster on your field. So, I'll send my Pot of Greed to the Grave and destroy your Snow Sprite!"

Flexing her muscles once more, the woman with a white mask pointed at the snow creature, which howled in pain. Seconds later, it exploded into millions of pieces.

Namine slightly growled in frustration, but smirked, saying "You know, that was foolish. You're wide open to an attack now."

Chuckling, Alexis shook her head, saying "Not really. I activate my face down card, the spell Machine Angel Ritual! With this, I can sacrifice a monster to summon a Cyber Angel. So, I'll send Cyber Gymnast to the Graveyard and special summon my Cyber Angel Idaten (1600/2000)!"

The woman in black and purple vanished and a new woman appeared. She had a red headdress with a black leotard and a pair of red boots and gloves. Her skin was mostly pink, and she had fiery eyes.

"That creature is pathetic. Why waste the effort for her?" Namine arrogantly asked.

Smirking once more, Alexis replied "You'll see. First, her effect goes off. I now get to add a spell card from my Graveyard to my hand, so I pick Pot of Greed."

Slowly, the spell card came out of the Graveyard Slot and into Alexis's awaiting hand, who said "I play Pot of Greed, so that means two new cards for me."

Picking up two new cards, she lightly smirked, saying "I activate the equip spell Ritual Weapon, and I attach it to Idaten, raising her points by 1500 (1600 + 1500 3100/2000 + 1500 3500)!"

A cross bow like weapon mounted onto the right arm of the female monster, making her cry out due to her new found strength.

"Idaten, show her we're not finished yet! Blow that dragon away now!"

Aiming her crossbow like weapon, the lady monster leapt into the air and launched a bolt of energy at the ice dragon. Roaring in pain when it was struck, it came crashing to the ground and exploded with a thunderous explosion.

"Darn you!" hissed Namine.

Chuckling, Alexis wagged a finger, saying "I told you I wasn't finished. Go ahead, make your move." (Alexis 2400, Namine 7900)

Snorting, Namine drew her card and groaned. Placing it in her spell/trap card slot, she called out "I'll play the spell card Scapegoat, which lets me special summon four Scapegoat Tokens (0/0) in defense."

Four round goat like creatures with small ivy colored horns on their foreheads. Each was different colors. There was a red one, a blue one, a pink one, and finally an orange one. The goats each had a small smile on their faces.

"I end." (Alexis 2400, Namine 7900)

Drawing, Alexis called out "Hiding won't save you! Idaten, attack one of those goats!"

Raising her crossbow like weapon on her arm, the female monster took aim and launched another energy bolt, which expertly struck the red goat, making it explode on contact.

"That's it for me." (Alexis 2400, Namine 7900)

Picking up her card, Namine frowned, saying "I pass this turn." (Alexis 2400, Namine 7900)

Smirking, Alexis drew, but soon frowned. Looking up, she called out "Idaten, take out another goat!"

Nodding to her master's order, the female monster took aim and launched another blaster bolt at the blue goat. Like it's comrade, it was easily shattered, leaving an empty space on Namine's field.

"That'll do it." (Alexis 2400, Namine 7900)

Once again drawing a card, Namine passively said "I pass." (Alexis 2400, Namine 7900)

"Odd…" Chazz mumbled, which caught Jaden's attention.

Nodding in reply, Jaden flatly asked "Why is she just passing?"

"I'm not sure. Maybe she's looking for a certain card." Chazz replied with an unsure look.

Shrugging, Jaden responded with "Maybe… Still, why is Alexis doing the same I wonder?"

"Good question. Only she knows that answer." Chazz passively replied.

Drawing a new card, Alexis called out "Idaten, attack another of her goats!"

Rushing forward at her master's command, the female monster raised her crossbow weapons and launched a blast bolt at the orange goat creature. The creature only smiled on as it was shattered in the blink of an eye.

"I think that's enough for now." (Alexis 2400, Namine 7900)

Frowning at these actions, Illidan pondered what Alexis's strategy, as well as Namine's, was. "_Neither have really done anything. Namine has passed each turn, while Alexis just whittles away at Namine's monsters. It's like they're each waiting for something._"

Brows furrowing, Illidan thought for another few moments on what each could be waiting for when realization hit him what Alexis was looking for. "_But can she do it? It would be rather dangerous for her to try that in her condition. Alexis, please be careful. I want you to win, but not at a cost of yourself. Please, hang on._"

Picking up yet another card, Namine said with a bored expression "I pass." (Alexis 2400, Namine 7900)

Drawing her card, Alexis called out "Idaten, finish off her last monster!"

Aiming expertly, the female creature fired a bolt of energy at the last sheep. It was struck head on and instantly destroyed.

"You'd better start doing something if you expect to win this duel." Alexis smartly said. (Alexis 2400, Namine 7900)


	50. Chapter 50: Icy Memories, Pt 2

**Hey everyone! Well, this week has been a quiet one. Nothing really going on for the most part, other than Marie keeping me busy, hehe. But seriously, nothing is going on, so moving on…**

**I've been working like mad on **_**Another**_**, but I feel bad due that I can't get the sequel to this story going. (/Sighs\) I figured one or the other would suffer from my focus being on one story or the other, lol. Oh well, I'll figure it out, I suppose…**

**Wow, I'm up to chapter 50! I had no idea I was. Cool! Heh, this story has done rather well for itself. I mean, 268 reviews already, and a favorite of 12. That's pretty nice stats, although they continue to change! Thanks everyone for your comments and reviews on this story.**

**Last time, Illidan and crew came out of the Obelisk Shrine after Alexis won. On their way back, they were confronted by Namine. She challenged Alexis to a Shadow Game for Obelisk and her soul. So far, Namine has basically dominated Alexis, but Alexis managed to at last seemingly even things up. Still, she is weak from her last Shadow Game, plus the duel is much more real. Can she keep this up, or will Alexis fall at Namine's icy hands?**

**Ok, time once more for the reviews!**

**Knives91: Glad you liked it. Thanks for the comment.**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Yeah, I have been using some of the KH characters, mostly due that I was playing it at the time originally. Heh, I actually had some different characters in originally, like Aster and a few others, but I changed my mind. I figured, why not use some KH characters since I really liked the game. There is a rumor about a movie, but that's been around forever. Heh, I tracked it down to back in 2005 or so. I'd like to see a movie, but if it ever comes out, I don't know. It'd probably be pretty good. I can't wait to see if it does though. Truthfully, I'm holding out for the 3****rd**** game, hehe.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Odd, I didn't see it… Stupid Thanks for the comment.**

**Isis the Sphinx: She is? I didn't know she could tie… Eh, as for the Inuyasha question, I honestly don't know. I read the magna, but so far, both are alive and well. It's nearly over, at least the English translated part is. It's close to ending though, so we'll see. Thanks for the comments.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Yes, she's using Alexis's Ice deck from season 2. Heh, well, no shrine match yet, just some good old Zell scheming, lol.**

**ardee: Yeah, her Ice deck as much better, but oh well. Seems like Namine has a handle on the deck though, and is punishing Alexis (irony anyone, lol). I didn't figure anyone expected Namine to lash out. Hmm, good question, how many others could Zell/Legato have recruited? Ah, I'm just kidding about Kaiba. He's one of the better characters. Well, Illidan didn't get much say in whether Alexis could duel or not. I mean, she just jumped in and took it up. Lol, I suppose I do like messing with everyone's heads. It's fun! (/Smiles evilly.\) But yes, the 50****th**** chapter is today. I hadn't realized it till today. Eh, I think I'll skip on the 2****nd**** chapter this time around though. I'm trying to stretch this out so I have time to begin the sequel, but that's looking like it may not happen anyways, lol. Thanks for the comments.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: The episodes with Alexis using her Ice deck were pretty cool. She royally screwed Jaden up in them. True, I wonder how many more Zell/Legato swayed to join him… LOL! Maybe they should get the robes and hoods from Organization 13… Eh, nah! It's cool. I really liked KH's too, hence why I used some of it's ammo on my story. Eh, no ties to the Heartless to be honest. Thanks for the comment about the duels.**

**Well, that's it. Thanks to everyone for your reviews. I look forward to reading the next set. For now though, I'm out, so enjoy the chapter!**

**Chapter 50**

Smirking at this, Namine drew her next card and chuckled, saying "You'll regret those words. I activate the spell card Monster Reborn! Now I can bring back my powerful dragon, so rise up once more Blue-Ice White Night's Dragon (3000/2500)!"

The mighty icy blue dragon rose up onto the field once more. With a massive roar, it seemed to dare Alexis to challenge it.

"Next, I activate the spell Heavy Storm, so say goodbye to our spell and trap cards!"

A massive set of twisters formed on the field, each seemingly seeking a target. One struck Namine's ice sculpture, causing it to crumble away. Two more tornados formed on Alexis's side, one striking the crossbow weapon the woman was wearing (3100 – 1500 1600/3500 – 1500 2000), and the other striking her face down card.

"No, my Hallowed Life Barrier!" Alexis called out as it was destroyed.

A fierce arctic wind began blowing up, causing snow to suddenly fall. The blinding snow focused around Alexis, seemingly keeping her from moving an inch. She pulled her arms in close, trying to find warmth, but little was found.

Laughing at Alexis, Namine yelled out "Blue-Ice White Night's Dragon, finish her pathetic creature now with Ice Lightning!"

Roaring loudly, the dragon took aim and released a blast of ice and lightning. The combo attack struck the female creature hard, shattering her into nothingness. The remainder of the blast continued on past, striking Alexis hard once more, making her cry out in pain and fall to the ground. As before, small cuts appeared on her skin, and more of her crimson life force began to ooze out.

The roaring winds kicked up and began pouring snow onto Alexis, who only shivered even more. Her body was slowly turning blue, causing her to blend in with her uniform. The blood on her body soaked into the snow, making her look more and more like a blood red snowman.

"ALEXIS, GET UP!" screamed Jaden and Chazz together.

Instead of getting up, she only lay there. "No… She can't be…" Jaden said with fear in his eyes.

Seeing her laying there, Illidan reached out with his Shadow Powers to check her. Sighing with relief, he mentally said "_She's alive, but barely. She's lost so much blood, plus she's exhausted. I don't think she can last any longer._"

Namine cackled at the fallen Alexis, saying "You fool, you will fall before my might. Look at all you've tried to do, and yet you fail. You will lose that card to me, along with your soul! And then, I shall once more have my memories!" (Alexis 1000, Namine 7900)

"Alexis…" Chazz lowly murmured. Looking at the ground, he then suddenly fiercely looked up, yelling "Get up! I know you're stronger than that! Get up, please!"

Still, Alexis lay still, making Namine arrogantly say "She's finished. This duel is as good as over."

Fiercely, Jaden spat back "No it's not!"

"Just admit it, that girl doesn't have the heart or strength to win. It's officially …"

"No…" called out a small voice.

Everyone looked to the small pile of snow to see Alexis slowly sitting up. With ragged breaths, she moved till she was finally on her hands and feet. Pain flashed over her face as she slowly began to stand. With a straggled growl, she stood back up, but nearly fell back down.

Looking up as the blood flowed down from her forehead and between her eyes, she softly spoke. "I'm… not giv… giving up... No… not now!"

Namine only gasped in shock at this, but steeled her resolve. "You will lose. Just fall already!"

Glaring at Namine, Alexis slowly said "No… I won't… give up!"

With great difficulty, she drew her next card. Once she had it in her hand, her face lit up a small bit. "I… play the spell… The Warrior Returning Alive! With it… I can return… a Warrior … Type monster from my … Grave to my hand. I choose… Blade Skater!"

Placing her hand in front of her Graveyard Slot, Alexis waited for the card to slowly shoot out. Pulling two other cards from her hand, she called out slowly "Now I play… the spell Polymerization, and … fuse Blade Skater (1400/1500) and … Etoile Cyber (1200/1600) together to form Cyber Blader (2100/800)!"

A woman with blue skin, butt length chestnut colored hair, a red body suit with a white tutu and white flowing ribbon on her hands and a red eye patch appeared. Beside of her, the purple skinned woman with some lighter purple blotches formed onto the field once more.

The two suddenly began to swirl together till a blinding light formed. From the light came a new woman with long calf length blue hair, who had pink, dark purple, and light purple skin and a skin tight body suit. She had a small tutu on like one of the previous monsters, and had a pair of purple ice skates. On her shoulders was a pink spike that was as tall as her head. Her eyes were covered by a pink pair of glasses that were not transparent to people looking at her.

"Pathetic… That creature isn't strong enough to beat my dragon either." Namine said with disgust.

Smirking slightly, Alexis panted for a moment and finally said "You'll see… I now play the spell… Fulfillment of the Contract! With this… I can bring back a ritual… monster from my Grave by paying 800 … points. I pay … it, and return Cyber… Angel Idaten (1600/2000)!"

The woman with a red headdress with a black leotard and a pair of red boots and gloves reappeared onto the field with a small battle cry.

"Thanks to doing this… I get a spell… card back from my Grave. I … pick Stray Lambs."

Slowly, the card slid back out of Alexis's Graveyard Slot and back into her waiting hand. Placing the card back in her left hand, she picked another, saying slowly "I play… the spell De-Fusion. Thanks to this, I can… split apart… my Cyber Blader… back into Etoile Cyber (1200/1600) and … Blade Skater (1400/1500)."

Once again, the woman in a red body suit with chestnut colored hair and the bald purple skinned woman reappeared onto the field.

Brow furrowing, Namine arrogantly pointedly said "That was pointless. Your monsters don't have nearly enough attack points to beat mine. Why summon three useless monsters…"

Stopping in mid-sentence, Namine's eyes went wide, and she yelled "You're not going to summon it, are you!?"

Chuckling raggedly, Alexis grinned, saying "I told you… I wouldn't… lose."

"No way, she can't be thinking of doing that! Illidan, can she even summon it!?" Jaden asked hurriedly.

Pondering the question, Illidan slowly replied with "I'm not sure. I think she can, but I don't know for sure. Her charm may give her power to."

Back on the field, Alexis pulled a card from her left hand and eyed it warily. "_I don't know if I can summon this card, but I have no choice. To save everyone, I have to do this!_"

Slapping the card to her Duel Disk, Alexis called out in an exhausted voice "I sacrifice… all three of my monsters… to summon the Egyptian… God, Obelisk the Tormentor (4000/4000)!"

The three female monsters on the field each vanished in a flash and lightning began to flash over the island. The cold wind and snow were completely blown away. A streak of lightning struck the field, causing a bright blue glow to form. Slowly, a large blue creature with massive wings, strong arms, powerful legs, and a strange head appeared. He let out a small moan, seemingly spelling out the impending doom.

Looking up at the Egyptian God wide eyed, Namine screamed "It's not possible! She shouldn't be able to summon it!"

Softly smiling, Alexis slowly mumbled "Obelisk, I don't… know if you'll obey me or not, but I ask of you to. I need… your help. I don't ask for myself… but for Marie, and for the world. Please, help me."

The large blue creature let out a small groan, which Alexis thought was a possible answer. Staring at Namine again, she slowly said "I play the spell Stray Lambs. With this, I get two new Lamb Tokens (0/0)."

A white and a pink set of round lamb creatures with golden horns appeared onto the field in front of the large blue creature.

"Obelisk… I sacrifice both tokens to you to increase your strength." Alexis said in a mere whisper while her eyes seemed to be dimming.

Looking down, the large blue creature grabbed hold of the two creatures. Holding them, one in each hand, he began absorbing their power. They finally vanished, and he began to turn red.

Namine glared at the large red monster with fear, but glanced down at Alexis and smirked, saying arrogantly with worry "You don't have the strength to do it. You fool, you will lose!"

Seeing that Alexis was about to pass out, Jaden yelled "You can do it Alexis! We believe in you!"

Gathering what strength was left, Alexis softly whispered "Obelisk, attack with Fists of Fury…"

Hearing the orders, the large red monster let out a loud groan and lifted it's large fists to point straight at the blue dragon. Power began to swirl around the fists, making them glow bright red.

"NO! THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING!" screamed Namine with great fear.

Releasing the blast, the swirling energy stream struck the icy dragon, shattering it with little effort. The blast continued on, striking Namine, making her release a blood curdling scream. With amazing force, the blast drove her into the barrier that still stood, making her torturous scream even louder than thought humanly possible. The blast continued to grind away on her while her life points drained to zero.

Once Namine's life points fell to zero, Alexis fell face first to the ground, hitting the ground with a sickening thud. Namine soon fell to the ground also with a louder thud. As she did, her body glowed black, and then it returned to normal. The barrier quickly vanished, and the red creature returned to it's blue form. Looking down, he let out a small groan before vanishing.

Rushing to her side, Jaden turned Alexis onto her back, yelling "ALEXIS! ALEXIS, ANSWER ME! OPEN YOUR EYES!"

"No…" Chazz said with mist filling eyes.

Shaking her lightly, Jaden tried again, yelling "Please, please, just open your eyes!"

Seeing no reaction, tears began to form in Jaden's eyes as he pulled Alexis closer, placing his face into her hair. "Please, I'm begging you, come back!" he whispered miserably into her hair.

"Ja…"

Pulling back to see Alexis's eyes barely open, Jaden smiled as tears continued to glisten down the side of his face. Pulling her into an embrace again, he let out a sigh of relief and sobbed. "You're still here." he mumbled as he held her gently.

Checking Namine, Illidan sighed. "Another one lost…" he mumbled as he softly closed Namine's hollow eyes.

Turning back to Alexis, Illidan moved behind Jaden and kneeled down. Placing a hand on his shoulder, he calmly said "Jaden, let me have her."

Worriedly looking at Illidan, he asked "Why?"

"I can heal her. Please, let me take her." Illidan calmly persuaded.

After a moment, Jaden nodded and backed off, allowing Illidan to lay Alexis flat on the ground. She moaned in pain, making Illidan coo to her, calmly saying "Easy now. Lay still."

With a dissatisfied groan, Alexis complied and laid still. Her eyes were drooping heavily, and her breath was still ragged.

"_She's lucky to be alive with the amount of blood she's lost. I have to act quickly, or she may die. My only hope is she'll recover._"

Placing his hands gently on her stomach, Illidan closed his eyes and began concentrating on sending out his healing powers. After a moment, his hands began glowing black, sending out healing waves into her body.

"Well?" Jaden impatiently asked with worry clearly in his voice.

Brows knitted in concentration, Illidan ignored him and continued sending out his healing waves. Keeping his calm, Illidan tried hard to keep a constant amount of healing energy flowing out of his body. Little by little, he could sense Alexis's wounds were slowly closing.

"Come on, is it working or not!?" Jaden prodded.

Growling with frustration, Illidan opened his eyes, but kept his focus on healing Alexis. In an irritated voice, he hissed "Quiet! I need to concentrate."

Taken aback by Illidan's words, Jaden sighed and nodded. Returning his full concentration to Alexis, Illidan closed his eyes once more. Pushing more energy into his healing powers, he sighed.

"_I never was the best healer of the group. I could heal people, but Marie and Bakura were always so much better at this than me. I only have myself to blame for that, but I was a fighter mostly, not a healer._" he chided to himself.

After nearly an hour, all of Alexis's wounds had healed, and her body appeared to be completely bruise and scratch free. Letting out a relieved sigh, Illidan stood up, but nearly fell over.

"Whoa, I used a bit too much power." he admonished.

Moving beside Alexis, Jaden stared at her for a while and asked "Why isn't she awake?"

Slowly standing back up, Illidan replied "She's exhausted. She needs rest, so let her. I'll take her back to her dorm for now. You all head back to your own dorms as well."

Chazz nodded and began to walk off, but noticed Jaden staring intently at Alexis. "Come on Slacker, you heard him." Chazz called out.

"I just…" Jaden began, but was cut off by Illidan. "Jaden, you need rest. Go back to the dorm. I'll take care of her. I promise."

Defeated, Jaden nodded and walked off. Sighing, Illidan gently lifted Alexis into his arms and carried her to the Blue Dorm. Quickly finding her room, he used his Shadow Powers to unlock the door and carefully placed her on the bed.

Pulling the covers up over her, Illidan smiled at her, saying "You did well Alexis. I'm proud of you. Take a good rest."

Closing the door behind him, Illidan softly smiled. "_One out of four down, three to go. I just hope things turn out alright. I'm coming Marie. Just hang on._"

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Frowning, Legato stared out at the cloudy night. "She failed us." he mumbled.

In the back of his mind, Zell called out "_Master, have patience. We will defeat Illidan and claim all of the Egyptian God Cards. Once we do, we shall fully reenergize the Sacred Beasts!_"

Still frowning, Legato replied "Still, that is one less card that we have acquired. The others better not fail."

"_Master, have faith in them..._"

"I have no faith in anyone!" Legato roared.

Pausing for a moment, Zell finally said "_Even if they fail Master, we shall take the cards from Illidan. Don't worry, I promise we shall have the Egyptian Gods' powers!_"

"We'd better, or all that I have worked for will fall through. Do not fail me Zell!" Legato icily warned. "You will regret it if you do."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Silently pondering what the fate of Illidan was, Marie once again reached out with her senses. Finding nothing like before, she sighed in defeat.

"Damn barrier…" she miserably muttered.

Glancing down at her stomach, she sighed with her thoughts turning to the child within her. "_I wonder will we make it through this little one?_"

Shaking her head, she sighed once more and softly smiled. "_I know we will. Your father will come and save us. He's never let me down before, and he won't let either of us down, I know. I just have to have faith in him._"

Softly smiling, she remembered her past life when she had become pregnant the first time. It was the day that the battle with Gozaburo had happened. That morning, she had found out she was a month along in her pregnancy. When she had found out, she had been so happy and surprised. She had planned on sharing her secret with Illidan after they had dealt with the issue of the Millennium Crown that day.

Sadly, instead of getting to tell him the joyous news that day, it was a day of death and torture. Gozaburo had gone insane due to the Millennium Crown's power, and fatally wounded Yami. He had nearly killed the others as well, but luckily, no one of the group was killed due to the battle. Only Gozaburo himself was the other casualty thanks to Illidan's heroism.

After Yami's funerals and burial, plus the sealing away of the Millennium Items did she share her secret with Illidan. He had been furious that she hadn't told him the day of the battle, but that fury was soon overcome with happiness that she had survived, and that their child had not been hurt.

Her first pregnancy had been gentle, and Madan, their first daughter, had been born with no complications. Smiling at the thought of seeing Illidan's reaction to their daughter warmed her heart. She had not seen Illidan smile that much throughout the day since before Yami's death. Their daughter had truly seemingly saved Illidan from himself, and brought the pair great joy.

Each child after that was yet another miracle added their wonderful lives. Illidan still blamed himself for Yami's death, but the children helped him move on, and to deal with it better than before.

Sadly sighing, she silently said "_Please little one, hang on. He'll come for us. He promised to always protect me, and he will always protect you. So please, hold on. He will come._"


	51. Chapter 51: Ra's Roar, Pt 1

**Hello once again everyone. Well, it's been another fun weekend. I visited my grandfather Saturday, who is home now. (/Deeply sighs\) My poor mom, who came to visit, and my grandmother… My grandmother didn't sleep Friday night, except for an hour. Mom did pretty well, but we could both tell, it's a bit much for my grandmother. The physical therapist did stop in while I visited, and told them that it is possible to probably get my grandfather back to a center for physical therapy once more now that he's more awake. It will be a week or two before it could happen, but we'll see. For now, this week, he has a test sometime soon to see if he can swallow alright (a barium test). If he can, that'll make things much easier if he does go back for physical therapy. Otherwise, not much else happened this weekend really, other than me and Marie slept part of Sunday afternoon. Lol, she said it was cute that I was asleep when she came home and she just curled up in bed with me.**

**Well, writing wise, **_**Another **_**is coming along nicely. Currently, I am getting some ideas for the sequel to **_**FG**_**, but it's still difficult to write anything down. Eh, I've got some time before this story ends, but still, I'd like to work on it so I have something when this one finishes. (/Deeply sighs\) We'll see where I get before then. If I keep on schedule for this story, there is time, but that's if, lol. Anyways, I will do my best to have something figured out in the near future.**

**Last time, the clash between Alexis and Namine ended in a big way with Alexis summoning Obelisk and crushing Namine with his special ability. Also, Legato was seen to be very angry with Zell's failure to capture the first Egyptian God Card, but has agreed to let things play out. Also, Marie revealed that in the past she had been pregnant when Gozaburo had went insane. Still, she clings to hope that Illidan will find her and their child before it's too late. Can Illidan and the others reclaim the remaining God Cards before time is up, or will Illidan end up being too late?**

**Alright, time to get down to my favorite part. It's review time!**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Heh, yes, the group is going through a great bit of grief. Heh, I liked Yami Marik as well, although I preferred Yami Bakura. Ah, he made being evil look like so much fun. Yami Marik did the same, although he had the tongue problem… But yes, he was very deranged and gave anyone the creeps I'm sure. Glad you liked the chapter. Yes, Alexis managed to summon Obelisk somehow and it listened to her. Heh, yeah, I made it a bit of a surprise to who the guardians were for each Egyptian God Card. Originally, I had thought of putting CED in charge of Slifer or Ra, but then I figured, nah, too predictable, lol. LOL! Eh, you might want to get that distorted face looked at. Thanks for the comments.**

**ardee: I know, it is odd Obelisk obeyed Alexis, but I figured like you said, since she defeated him, and she did have a Shadow Charm, the card may have figured it was alright to obey her. Yeah, Kaiba was one of the better villains from Yugioh, although he turned more and more good throughout the series. True, Yami did get weepy in the Orichalicos series, but I did really like that series was the best. Lol, yeah, Yami Bakura was one of the favorites of everyone, and I do have to admit, I liked him due that he made being evil look fun. Yeah, Yami and Illidan were truly close, no matter what had happened. If my mate ever finished her story, you'd see more about it… There is hope she will one day. When, I don't know though, lol. But yes, their fathers didn't like one another, but Illidan and Yami overcame that and remained good friends, each fully trusting the other. Ah, that question about DMoC being a Chaos monster. Well, I count him as one due that he came from the same series of cards, plus he does have the word 'Chaos' in his name. True, he's different, but I keep him in the same group just due that he is like the others. Yes, DMoC is a great card, and truthfully, it's one of two of my favorite cards. My second favorite is Luster Dragon (MFC one). I really like the artwork on it, plus it was my first 1900 non-tribute monster, so I really kind of cherish it. Heh, I actually got a few of them now. But DMoC has been my fav due that I got him in the first pack of IOC I bought. Thanks for the comments as always!**

**Isis the Sphinx: Yeah, I know the feeling about it being a long week. Heh, hopefully your week will be alright. I know mine will be challenging… Thanks about the chapter.**

**Knives91: Thanks, and I shall keep posting!**

**x-knight20: Thank you. Yes, she managed to summon Obelisk. Oh, cool about the KH fic. I may check it out. Heh, I have so many fan fics to really read. I'm so far behind on one Inuyasha that I'm pondering if I'll ever catch up. I'm like nearly 20 chapters behind, lol. Plus, I have others to catch up on. Oi, just so much work to keep reading…**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Actually, I did research the move I used at the end, and it's legal. You see, the text on Stray Lambs is as follows: "**_**If you activate this card, you cannot Normal Summon, Flip Summon or Special Summon during this turn. Special Summon 2 'Lamb Tokens' (Beast-Type/EARTH/Level 1/ATK 0/DEF 0) in Defense Position.**_**" The effect kicks in after you play the spell card, not before. Since I special summoned the three monsters prior, plus tribute summoned Obelisk before playing Stray Lambs, the effect of the spell were pointless. When played, I couldn't summon anymore afterwards. See what I'm talking about? Heh, who the next challenger is, hard to say. Actually, it's said soon, lol. Thanks for the review.**

**Well, that's it for this round. The reviews seem to get longer and longer each time, which I'm not complaining, just commenting and complimenting. Thanks for the reviews everyone. I really enjoy them, and they help me with my writing. Also, thanks to my usual PM'er, Raymond Barrett. Again, thanks everyone for your reviews. I look forward to the next batch. Till then, enjoy the chapter!**

**Chapter 51**

The next day slowly passed away. Around three, Illidan let out a sigh and gathered his group of three back up. It was a beautiful day, but the mood of the group didn't match.

Marching along, Chazz asked Alexis "Are you sure you recovered completely?"

Glaring at him, she snapped "That's the tenth time you've asked me, and for the last time, YES! I'm fine!"

Both Illidan and Jaden chuckled at her reaction and Chazz's fearful reaction. In a furious pace, Alexis walked in front of the chuckling pair. Passing by, she threw a death glare at the two, making both cease their chuckling.

Turning his attention the task before the group, Illidan turned his head back to Chazz, saying "Chazz, we're going to the Ra Shrine today. Also, Jaden, we're going to try and go to the Slifer Shrine also."

"Why two in one day?" Jaden asked, somewhat curious.

Brows knitting, Illidan replied with a twinge of sadness "There are only three days left. With three cards to go, it would be pushing it to deliver them all that quickly."

Softening a bit, he added "This way, we'll maybe have a day to rest."

"I gotcha ya." Jaden replied with a smile.

Looking ahead, Illidan saw the familiar concealed area coming into view. Softly smiling, he silently hoped all would go well. "_If we can collect both Ra and Slifer today, then I should have adequate time to collect Anubis tomorrow. I fear that that last card will be the most difficult to recover. Still, I have to try._"

Rushing forward, Jaden ran into the small area and laughed, saying "This is it! We're here!"

Chuckling at his behavior, Illidan glanced at Chazz, who only shook his head. Looking at Alexis, he smirked when he saw her smiling at the childish antics of Jaden.

"Alright, settle down Jaden." Illidan said with a smile.

Nodding, Jaden rejoined the group. Once he was safely behind Illidan, Illidan raised his hand and swept it across. Instantly, the cloak and barrier surrounding another shrine was lifted, revealing the entrance to it.

"This is the Ra Shrine. Chazz, if you please, show your Shadow Charm to the door."

Grunting, Chazz stepped forward and pulled his Shadow Charm out. It was a simple golden eye patch with a mysterious looking eye in the center. Holding it up to the door, Chazz impatiently tapped his foot.

Soon enough, the door reacted and began to slide open. Pushing past Chazz, Illidan lead them into the shrine, knowing where they were headed. The door soon slid shut behind the group and the torches came to life. Walking on as if nothing happened, Illidan moved on towards the main chamber. The others followed while on guard, each glancing around the hallway curiously.

Finally arriving at the main chamber, Illidan moved into it with the group close behind him. Torches lit up around the room, illuminating it. In the center, a figure stood with a black cloak on.

Walking towards the figure calmly, Illidan smiled. He slowly moved towards the figure, causing it to turn towards Illidan and send out a small sphere of dark energy at him. Not flinching when the energy exploded near him, Illidan pressed forward.

"Illidan!" Jaden called out with some worry.

Paying no heed to Jaden, Illidan walked straight up to the figure. With a small smile still on his face, Illidan flatly stated "You missed."

The figure softly growled, but then let out a small chuckle. Pulling his hood off made the three students gasp in shock. A creature with purple skin, two large ivory white horns on the side of his head, and yellow eyes stared down at Illidan.

Smirking, the creature ripped off the robe that covered him, revealing the remainder of his body. His chest was covered only by a few straps that crisscrossed his body. His shoulders were covered by a set of shoulder pads made up of leather. He had armbands that went from his elbow to his wrists that were black as well, and finally wore a pair of black leather pants and a battle skirt as well.

Chuckling, the creature said "Well Master, only you would not be afraid of me hitting you. I see that your fear is still tempered to where you don't show it."

"True." Illidan simply replied.

Eyeing the others, the creature asked "Who are they?"

"The ones who are helping me recollect the Egyptian God Cards."

Glancing back at the students, the creature smirked, saying "Really? Interesting you'd pick a group like that."

"You trying to say something you freak!" Chazz growled out.

Giving Chazz an emotionless look, the creature said "Such insolence. Know your place mortal."

Growling louder, Chazz rushed forward. He was soon beside of Illidan and pointed a finger angrily at the creature, yelling "Don't disrespect The Chazz!"

Laughing at this, the creature evenly replied "You are not worth my time. You disrespect yourself without my help."

"Why you!" Chazz said through gritted teeth.

Sighing, Illidan patted Chazz on the shoulder, saying "Calm down Chazz."

Turning back the creature, Illidan lightly smiled and then turned to Chazz and the others, saying "Guys, this is the guardian of the Ra Shrine. He is the Duel Spirit known as Chaos Sorcerer."

Without much thought, Chazz asked "You mean the monster Chaos Sorcerer, as in the card?"

Smirking at this, Chaos Sorcerer responded "The one and only."

"You don't look so tough." Chazz mildly stated.

Infuriated by the words, the creature began forming a dark sphere in his left hand while forming a white in his right. "You will pay for those insolent words you little impudent brat!" he hissed.

"Don't lose your temper." Illidan chided with a small grin.

Growling slightly, the creature finally stopped forming the spheres and dissolved them. Taking a deep breath, he sighed and turned to Illidan, saying "Master, why have you come? As I remember, you said you yourself could not open the door to the shrine."

Nodding, Illidan replied softly "Yes, I did, and I didn't enter on my own. The seal was released on the door by this young man. He has come to challenge you for Ra."

Bursting out loud laughing, the sorcerer stepped backwards, holding his hands over his stomach. His laughter was loud and boisterous, and echoed throughout the shrine.

Finally regaining a little composure, the creature said with laughter in his voice "You're kidding me! This brat?!"

Growling furiously, Chazz opened his mouth to yell at the sorcerer when three spirits formed around him. They took the forms of a yellow, green, and black set of familiar creatures, each wearing pink bikini briefs.

"Ah boss, just ignore him." the yellow one said.

"Yeah, he's nothing but a big fraidy cat!" add the black one.

Nodding, the green one said "He's just a wimp who can't start to compete with your greatness."

Chuckling, Chazz calmed down and crossed his arms and closed his eyes. "You're right boys. He's just jealous of me." he simply bragged.

The vein in the purple sorcerer's forehead bulged out at this, causing the laughter to stop. "You little…"

"Easy there Chaos Sorcerer." Illidan chided.

Reopening his eyes, Chazz stared at the sorcerer and smirked, saying "I challenge you for that Egyptian God Card!"

Sneering, the sorcerer nodded, saying "Very well, I accept. You do realize this duel is over more than that card, right? If you win, you get the card, but if I win, I win not only your Shadow Charm, but your soul as well!"

"Yeah, yeah, I know all about your stupid Shadow Game. Let's do this!" Chazz barked back.

"Very well mortal, you will soon be in the Shadow Realm." the sorcerer remarked.

Holding out his left arm, it began to glow till finally a strange black Duel Disk formed. It didn't have a long tray either way for cards, but suddenly, it glowed and shot out two long blade sections, making room for cards. A deck then appeared in the creature's right hand, which he quickly shuffled and jammed into the deck holder in the Duel Disk.

Pulling his deck from his coat, Chazz simply shuffled and stuck his deck into his Duel Disk. Stepping back, he moved into position and smirked.

Walking over to Chazz, Illidan whispered "Be careful. Remember, Ra is one of the most powerful of the Egyptian God Cards. Watch yourself, and don't do anything too foolish."

"Don't worry Teach, I got this duel all planned out." Chazz arrogantly remarked.

Sighing, Illidan patted him on the shoulder, saying "Good luck."

With Illidan moving away, the sorcerer called out to Chazz, asking "Ready mortal?"

"Let's do this!" Chazz simply responded. Holding out his arm, the Duel Disk came to life and extended itself out.

Yelling in unison, the two said to one another "Game on!"

Picking up his first card, the sorcerer smugly said "I'll begin, and I start by playing my Divine Dragon Ragnarok (1500/1000) in defense!"

A pink energy dragon with a long slender snake like body formed onto the field in a coiled up position. It let out a soft roar, seemingly a warning roar.

"Let's see what you have mortal." (CS 8000, Chazz 8000)

Drawing his first card, Chazz lightly chuckled, saying "Oh, you'll see, and you'll regret facing me! Prepare to be Chazzed UP!"

Frowning, the sorcerer darkly replied "You are a strange one."

The yellow spirit monster with bikini briefs appeared beside of Chazz's head and happily said "Don't let him bother you boss. He's just jealous of you."

Smacking the air where the creature was, Chazz irritably said "Shut up. Now, where was I?"

Momentarily thinking, Chazz smirked, saying "Ah yes, now I remember. I was about to pound you into a pulp! I'll kick things off by playing the spell Fiend's Sanctuary! With this little baby, I get to special summon a Metal Fiend Token (0/0)!"

With a small flash, a creature made up of round metal spheres that gradually got larger appeared in a hunched over stance on the field.

"I'm sure you're wondering, why summon that thing? Well, I have a good reason! I'm sacrificing it, so make room for the Armed Dragon LV5 (2400/1700)!"

Vanishing quickly, the small metal creature was replaced instantly with a large dull grey armored dragon with orange skin. It had several large spikes sticking from it's body, a pair of small drills sticking form it's knees and elbows, powerful clawed fists, short stubby wings, and finally a strong mace shaped ball on it's tail.

"Think that's strong, then you haven't seen nothing yet! I play the spell Level Up, allowing me to sacrifice my current dragon for it's next form, so good bye LV5 and hello Armed Dragon LV7 (2800/1000)!"

Glowing brightly, the orange and grey dragon vanished, causing a plume of smoke to rise up. From the smoke came a loud roar, followed by a bright glow. Soon enough, powerful clawed hands came out of the smoke, followed by metallic wings, a long tail with a cylindrical like mace on the tip, strong legs with drills sticking from it's legs, and finally followed by a strong head covered in semi-shiny metal armor that protected orange skin. Letting out a massive roar once more, the dragon glared across the field at the energy dragon.

With a smug look, Chazz said "If you think I'm through, you're dead wrong! You see, as strong as this dragon is, he's not the final level! I sacrifice this dragon in order to summon the top dragon, my Armed Dragon LV10 (3000/2000)!"

Vanishing quick as it had appeared, the powerful dragon was removed, causing a bright red glow to form. From the glow came a new dragon, one with shiny metal armor that covered a majority of it's body, and reddish-orange skin. On it's back were massive metal wings. It's head was covered completely in the armor, as was most of it's chest and arms. The underside of it's arms were not covered, and revealed reddish-orange skin, as did it's legs. The dragon, unlike the previous forms, stood fully on two legs up straight and tall. Sending out a louder roar the previous dragon, the dragon gave an enraged glare at the weaker energy dragon.

Darkly laughing, Chazz called out "Better get ready to be torn apart! Time to activate my dragon's special ability! By sending a card from my hand to my Graveyard, I can destroy all of your monsters, so I send Chthonian Soldier (1200/1600) to my Grave! Say goodbye to your only defense!"

Roaring loudly, the dragon opened it's jaws, revealing blazing red flames. With little effort, it shot forth a mighty beam of red power, striking the pink energy dragon, making it howl in pain till it finally shattered into pieces.

"Armed Dragon, direct attack that freak with Dragon Energy Claw!"

Stepping forward, the dragon pulled back it's right arm and formed a sphere of red energy within it. Closing it's fist around the sphere, the dragon moved forward another step and thrust all it's power into the claw. With ease, the dragon pushed it's fist forward into the sorcerer, who cried out in pain and was knocked into the air by the force of the blast.

Landing on the ground nearly ten feet away, the sorcerer slowly stood up and wiped a small bit of blood away from the corner of his lip. Sneering at the sight of blood on his fingers, the sorcerer roughly said "That one was free."

Chuckling at this, Chazz simply replied "There's more where that came from, so make your move. Let's see what a guardian can do." (CS 5000, Chazz 8000)

Smiling, Jaden exclaimed "Total sweetness! Chazz busted out some nice moves, and has managed to take the lead!"

"I'm surprised how well he started the duel out. Maybe Chazz will make it through his duel easier than I did mine." Alexis said with a small grin.

Illidan continued to watch, and evenly said "It's far from over. Things have just begun, so don't get your hopes up yet."

Seeing the seriousness of Illidan's comments, both Alexis and Jaden nodded and refocused their attention to the duel.

Picking up a new card, the sorcerer smirked, saying "You have had your chance to do as you please. Now it's my turn to make you pay. I shall begin your demise by activating the special effect of my Thunder Dragon (1600/1500) in my hand. By sending it to the Graveyard, I can add up to two new ones to my hand, but I'll only pick one."

Placing the monster card into the Graveyard Slot, the sorcerer pulled his deck out and picked the same dragon from it, saying "But I'm not done yet, for I send this one to the Graveyard as well, allowing me yet another Thunder Dragon to come into my hand."

Stuffing the dragon card into his Graveyard Slot, the sorcerer searched his deck once more for the same dragon and finally found it, placing it in his left hand. Once placing his deck back in it's slot, he called out "Time to destroy you! I play the spell Dragon's Mirror! Thanks to this card, I can remove from play creatures that form a Dragon Type Fusion monster. I pick my two Thunder Dragons, thus I must remove them from play. Now I can fuse them together to form the Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon (2800/2100)!"

A pair of green snake like dragons appeared on the field and began swirling together, each letting out a soft roar. From the swirling, a bright light formed. With the light dimming, a new dragon appeared. This dragon had twin heads, red skin, large clawed feet, and a powerful tail. Each head had a long horn on it's nose. The twin heads let out a massive roar, trying to strike some sort of fear into the larger dragon across from it.

"That pathetic dragon doesn't have the power to out gun my dragon. Try a new strategy, like one that works." Chazz smartly remarked.

Chuckling, the sorcerer grunted out "We'll see about your claims. For now, I activate the spell Dimension Fusion! To use it, I must pay 2000 of my life points, but it comes with a very good effect. We each are now allowed to special summon all as many removed from play monsters as we can, so I pick both of my Thunder Dragons (1600/1500)!"

The pair of green snake like dragons with wings reappeared onto the field, each letting out a soft growl.

"Still not enough." Chazz bragged.

Darkly chuckling, the sorcerer smugly replied "It will be."

Staring at the three monsters, Jaden quietly asked Alexis "What do you think his plan is?"

Shrugging, Alexis flatly replied "No clue. It makes no sense to summon those three monsters. None of them are strong enough to even put a dent in Chazz's dragon."

"Yeah…" Jaden murmured as he stared on.

Looking at the field, Illidan silently pondered Chaos Sorcerer's moves himself. "_What is he up to? None of those dragons have enough attack points to beat Chazz's dragon, so why go to all the trouble of summoning three dragons…_"

Realizing the last of his statement, Illidan gasped, knowing now what was about to happen. "_He has it already!? This is not good for Chazz! He'll be hit pretty hard if what I think is about to happen happens._"

Back on the field, Chazz glared at the three dragons staring at him. "_What a complete waste. This guy should know he can't out muscle my dragon with those three monsters… Wait, three!? That means… Oh no, Egyptian God Cards require three monsters to be summoned!_"

Seeing the look of worry and surprise on Chazz's face, the sorcerer laughed, saying "Ah, so you figured it out huh? Well, about time. Now then, I sacrifice all three of my monsters…"

The three dragons began glowing and suddenly vanished, causing the room to seemingly become even darker. Calling out again, the sorcerer yelled "… in order to summon the monster that will destroy you! Prepare for the end! Come forth my mighty Egyptian God, The Winged Dragon of Ra (?/?), and shine your light of destruction on this fool!"

Slowly, the room began glowing golden due to a large golden sphere descending into the room. All eyes went to the sphere as it finally slowed and hovered above the field.

"WHAT IS THAT THING!?" Chazz yelled in shock.

Chuckling, the sorcerer simply replied "That is The Winged Dragon of Ra. It is currently locked away in it's sphere form. I shall now release it by reciting the ancient chant."

Closing his eyes, calmly reopened them and slowly in a calm voice said "Great beast of the sky, please hear my cry. Transform thyself from orb of light and bring me victory in this fight. Envelop the desert with your glow and cast your rage upon my foe. Unlock your powers from deep within so that together we may win. Appear in this Shadow Game as I call your name, Winged Dragon of Ra!"

While the sorcerer recited the chant, slowly, the sphere began to unlock and the mighty dragon began to take form. Once the chant had finished, a large golden dragon that looked to be made of metal, appeared onto the field. It had a massive wing spread, extremely sharp looking claws and talons, a powerful tail, and a massive head.

The dragon let out a terrifying roar, causing the dragon on Chazz's field to shutter from it's power. Chazz also seemed to lightly shiver with fear from the sight of the dragon.

Seeing Chazz's fear, the sorcerer smirked, mockingly asking "Terrified of my dragon are you? You should be! My Egyptian God will rip you and your dragon apart!"

Calming slightly, the sorcerer smirked once more, saying "I should explain to you how my dragon's points are determined. You see, his points are the sum of the three monsters I sacrificed to summon Ra. That means, combined, my dragon's power is 6000 (2800 + 1600 + 1600 6000/2100 + 1500 + 1500 5100)!"

Releasing yet another mighty roar, the dragon made the ground shutter from it's awesome power. Chazz only could stare at the dragon wide-eyed, unsure what to think or say.

"Foolish mortal, you are too weak to be facing an Egyptian God Card! You will fall here in this battle!" the sorcerer said with a cackle.


	52. Chapter 52: Ra's Roar, Pt 2

**Hey everybody! Well, this week has been decent so far. I saw my grandfather Monday, and he was doing well. My grandmother seemed fine as well. She's not been getting too much sleep, but hopefully she'll get more now that grandpa is getting back on some kind of sleeping schedule. Anyways, other than my grandfather, life is cool. I talked to a friend of mine that I knew in high school and college, which was great. He seems to be doing well, which I was glad to hear. Other than that, really not much has changed with me.**

**I've been writing like a man possessed on **_**Another**_** the last few days. Plus, my mate keeps questioning me on future developments, and continues to proofread the story for me, which helps me make small corrections. I'm thinking in the near future, I may start posting chapters on it. I want to make sure that things are solid first on the opening chapters, even though I'll probably be just posting 1-2 chapters a week for the time being. As for the sequel to **_**FG**_**, I still can't get anything going it seems. Every time I try to imagine something, I have difficulty. Eh, it maybe just due that I'm working on **_**Another **_**also and that I'm having a lot of fun with it. I'll try though to get something going though.**

**Last time, Chazz's duel with the 2****nd**** guardian, Chaos Sorcerer, has begun. With Ra on the line, Chazz is pulling out all the stops to win the card, but has now become confronted with the Egyptian God Card itself. Can Chazz overcome the most powerful Egyptian God Card, or is it his destiny to fail?**

**Alright, time for the best part of the morning! It's REVIEW TIME!**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: True, Illidan never actually played Chaos Sorcerer in the in any of his duel in my stories. Really, Chaos Sorcerer was like a second string monster for Illidan, like a side deck I suppose. Honestly, I never did mention the card due that he had the other three. Heh, true, you'd think his monsters would pick up Illidan's modest nature, but they are just being themselves, which I'm sure Illidan prefers. Yes, true, it's fun to see who has a bigger ego, Chazz or CS, lol. Yeah, I did bring out the Egyptian God Card out a bit early again. I guess mostly to prove that they had a mastery over the cards, and that they wished to prove it. I mean, what better way to pummel your opponent than bring out a legendary card that can beat them into submission? True, CED and CS could have had better decks, but I just kind of had ideas for what kind of decks to use, and what could be used to summon the Gods the quickest. Hehe, yeah, the other guardians are yet to be revealed, making it hard to think past these 2 guardians. Lol, nice hair. Maybe I should trim it. (/Slashes hair shorter with claws.\) There, better? (/Frowns at new voice.\) Uh dude, he's dead. Like, dead dead. Yes, very odd. Thanks for the comments!**

**x-knight20: Thanks. CS isn't a huge fav of mine since I really prefer Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning over him. He had the better effects, plus he could remove from play face down cards also. CS is good for taking out powerhouses or annoying monsters, but otherwise, he's not super, unfortunately. Still, I did use him a good bit after the rest of the Chaos monsters were vanquished. I really liked the Chaos series of cards, but in the end, the cards were just too powerful and had to be banned, sadly…**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Yep, it is Ra's turn. True, it would have been interesting for the one turn kill, but eh, I didn't use it to be honest, to my knowledge… Yeah, the card effects are kind of odd in video games. Heh, I did have a pretty fun strategy back in the day with Scapegoat, some monster, plus United We Stand. Summon some monster, play Scapegoat, and hook up that monster with UWS, and bam! I know, simple strategy, but it worked. Plus I used it in **_**ToP**_**, lol. But it's the same principle as the strategy I used with Alexis. Hmm, actually, you can activate Soul Exchange after the Battle Phase in the Main Phase 2. I know, it seems like you can't, but you can. So long as the Battle Phase doesn't take place after you played this card, it's a legal move. I know, it's confusing, but rulings help, sometimes… I always look them up when I'm unsure, or at least when I used to play I did, lol. Thanks though for the comments, and I hope that answers your question on Soul Exchange.**

**Knives91: Thanks. Lol, true, Chazz maybe in for a rough ride. Hmm, you could be right that BLS-EotB is the last guardian… Or it could be DMoC… Or Chaosrider Gustaph… Lol, or any other Chaos monster, hehe. I know, that's just evil and confusing, lol.**

**pink-kiss-candy: LOL! The sorcerer is Chaos Sorcerer, as in the card Chaos Sorcerer, hehe.**

**ardee: Thanks. True, Chazz quickly summoned Armed Dragon LV10 and started out good. I like the Armed Dragon cards also. I've had thoughts of building a real deck for them, but unfortunately, I don't have them all, or enough of each that I have. Plus I lost interest in the game, lol. But don't forget, I did use them for **_**TWS**_**, which shows I did like them, at one time, lol. Nope, Illidan never actually played Chaos Sorcerer before. Possibly BLS is guarding Slifer and DMoC guards Anubis, but like I said with Knives91, what keeps me from using other Chaos monsters, hehe. True, who will fight Anubis? All three? Only one? Or someone not of the three? Actually, I called the dorm, ironically, Anubis White. Yes, the sequel will be a GX one. Lol, be kind of silly of me to revert backwards if I did a sequel. True, I could mix themes, but eh, I'm not sure what I'm going to do. Hehe, I have ideas to include elements from this story, but which ones, I will never reveal! At least till the sequel, lol. But yes, there are a lot of different things going on in GX. There are the Demons, Light of Ruin, Dark World, things from Jaden's past, etc… Heh, good question on how he'll beat Ra. Maybe ask nicely for him to stand down? Eh, Chazz somewhat reminds me of Kaiba, but not quite. He's got the makings of a Kaiba just waiting for his shot. Yes, it'll be a nice duel regardless.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Lol, a bit maybe. They'll never lose the ego! Ah yes, a nice place to get sick is high school. That sucks that you're dizzy. Hopefully, you've recovered some since then. Lol, yes, high school is not the best years of your life. That's reserved for college… Or after, lol. Thanks for the comments.**

**Wow, my reviews ran over to 3 pages this time! Usually it's 2 or so, but 3, just wow. Lol, I'm not saying that's bad. I'm just saying wow, lol. But thanks everyone for your reviews. I really enjoyed reading this last round of them. Thank you everyone for them and your continuous support of this story. I hopefully will have some work done on the sequel in the near future… I use the word hopefully carefully, lol. In the meantime, this story rolls on. For now, enjoy the chapter everyone! Later!**

**Chapter 52**

Pointing a finger at Chazz's dragon, the sorcerer called out "Ra, incinerate his pathetic dragon with your Blaze Cannon!"

Letting out a massive roar, an arch of the dragon's back began glowing brightly. Slowly, a large golden sphere of energy began forming within the arch. The energy soon began to go down wire like structures into the dragon's mouth, causing a powerful golden glow to begin forming. Opening it's jaws fully, the dragon spat the energy blast from it's jaws, sending a golden beam straight at the heavily armored dragon.

In the blink of an eye, the blast tore through the armored dragon, not even giving it a chance to roar in pain. The blast continued on, striking Chazz hard. He raised his arms and attempted to brace himself for the oncoming blast, but it struck him harder than he originally thought it would. Yelling out in pain, Chazz tried hard to stand his ground, but continued to slide backwards.

The blast soon ended, leaving a smoldering Chazz. Smoke was pouring off of his body, but he still stood. Lowering his arms, Chazz lightly glared at the sorcerer, but suddenly, without a word, he fell to his hands and knees, panting heavily.

Chuckling at the response to the attack, the sorcerer smugly said "See you foolish mortal. I told you before that you won't win this duel, and I meant it. Now, suffer the fate I warned you about. Make your move, if it's possible…" (CS 2000, Chazz 5000)

"Chazz… Come on, don't give up now." Alexis kindly said, trying to motivate Chazz to stand up.

Staring at Chazz, Jaden called out "Chazz, I know you can do this! Come on man, you've faced tougher duels than this!"

Gritting his teeth, Chazz slowly stood back up while panting heavily. Standing fully upright, Chazz slowly drew his card, saying "My turn. I summon Y-Dragon Head (1500/1600) in defense."

A machine red dragon with four smaller legs, metallic claws, and wings spread appeared in a defensive stance.

"I'm done for the turn, so go ahead." (CS 2000, Chazz 5000)

Drawing his card, the sorcerer chuckled, saying "You're not doing too well now mortal. What's wrong, where is the confidence you had earlier?"

Growling furiously, Chazz yelled "I'll show you what I have left soon enough!"

"I'm sure you will. In the meantime, I'll continue to devastate you. I summon Queen's Knight (1500/1600)."

In a flash, a female warrior with blond hair that fell to her mid-back, dressed in pink armor, except for her legs which were bare, and holding a sword in her left hand and a triangle like shield appeared with a small cry.

"Ra, eliminate his pathetic scrapheap with Blaze Cannon!"

Roaring loudly at it's orders, the metallic golden dragon took aim. A sphere formed within the archway as it had before, and slowly, energy began flowing into it's mouth. Opening it's jaws, the dragon spat a massive stream of golden energy at the weaker machine dragon, which was completely obliterated, but not before giving a small, weak mechanical roar.

Sneering at his handiwork, the sorcerer called out once more, saying "Queen's Knight, show him that you're a cut above him with Royal Slash!"

Rushing forward with sword raised, the woman swung her sword into Chazz, making him scream out in pain. A single line of ripped cloth was left on Chazz's chest, as well as a small amount of blood starting to form from the cut.

"I shall end for now. Come boy, give in, for you will lose." (CS 2000, Chazz 3500)

Clutching his chest, Chazz lightly panted, saying "No way… No way I'm giving up to a guy like you!"

Quickly drawing his card, he frowned and slapped the card to his Duel Disk, saying "I set a monster. That's it." (CS 2000, Chazz 3500)

Picking up a new card, the sorcerer let out a deep laugh, mockingly saying "You will not survive this turn. I summon King's Knight (1600/1400)!"

An older man with blonde shoulder length hair with red and gold armor, armed with a round shield with a star on it and a sword appeared beside of the woman in pink.

Smirking at his accomplishment, the sorcerer called out "King's Knight has a very special ability by the way. When I have Queen's Knight out, along with King's Knight, I can special summon from my deck Jack's Knight (1900/1000)!"

Searching his deck, the sorcerer finally found the card and slapped it to his Duel Disk. Immediately, a young knight with blonde hair that came to his shoulders with blue armor, a strong sword, and a triangle like shield appeared. He let out a small cry, showing he was ready to fight.

Seeing the field was stacked against Chazz, Alexis mumbled "No, he's finished."

Turning to her, Jaden was quick to say "Don't lose hope. Chazz will make it, I know he will."

"How do you know that?" she asked in response.

Smiling, Jaden turned back to the duel, saying "A duel isn't over till the last card is played, and I have a feeling Chazz isn't ready to give up, not just yet."

"I guess…"

"Have faith Alexis. He'll make it." Jaden encouraged.

On the field, Chazz indifferently glared at the sorcerer. Seeing this, the sorcerer laughed, saying "You're finished this turn boy. Watch as your life points are about to go to zero! Jack's Knight, eliminate his monster with Royal Slash!"

With a quick leap, the young knight swiftly skimmed the field and plunged his sword into the face down horizontal card image. The image instantly shattered, revealing a young woman with orange hair that fell to her waist and wore a simple blue dress. She was instantly shattered into pieces due that she wasn't strong enough to hold her position.

"Pathetic that you'd have such a weakling hold your front line. Now, you will fall! Attack him directly Ra with Blaze Cannon!"

Roaring loudly, the mighty golden dragon prepared to launch it's attack when suddenly the field began glowing light green. The green light flooded the field, stopping the dragon in it's tracks. Seeing the light, the dragon stopped building energy and settled into a normal position.

Looking around with confusion, the sorcerer pointed a finger at Chazz, yelling "What is the meaning of this!?"

Chuckling, Chazz smugly replied "It's really simple. Let me spell it out for you. You destroyed The Unhappy Maiden (0/100). When sent to the Grave due to battle, she ends the Battle Phase. Too bad, you would have had me too, but oh well."

Growling with fury, the sorcerer roughly replied "Fine, I place a card face down. Show me what your last turn can do boy!" (CS 2000, Chazz 3500)

"Phew, he saved himself." Jaden said as he released a sigh.

"Yeah, but it won't be so easy to win this duel." Alexis added.

Nodding in reply, Jaden responded with "True, but knowing Chazz, he has some kind of plan."

"I hope, or else we're going to be one Egyptian God Card less."

On the field, Chazz looked at his deck, softly saying "This is my last chance. Gotta make this one count."

Drawing his card in a sweeping motion, he brought it close enough to glance at it and smirked. Lightly chuckling, he called out "It looks like I'm not done with this duel yet. I play the spell Enchanting Fitting Room! With this, I pay 800 life points, and then I get to pick up four cards from my deck. If any are level three or lower, I get to special summon them, but if they're not, I shuffle them back into my deck."

Running his fingers over four cards, Chazz grabbed the four cards at once, and called out "You losers had better be there if we're gonna win!"

Pulling out four cards, Chazz looked at them and chuckled. A holo image of all four cards appeared on the field, showing three monsters and a spell card. Smirking greatly, Chazz arrogantly said "Obviously, my Frontline Base isn't a monster, but the three Ojama Brothers ((0/1000) x 3) sure are!"

Appearing on the field were three small creatures, each wearing a pair of pink bikini briefs. The first was black and had a large nose with two small eyes. The next was yellow, had eyes attached to small tentacles, and red lips. The last one was green, had a single eyed, and was slightly more muscular than the others.

Once the three appeared, they said in unison "Tada!" When the three looked up though, they all three screamed in fear at once. All three panicked, and in their panic, wet their underwear. In a mad scramble, the three piled in behind Chazz, using him as a shield.

Growling loudly, Chazz screamed "You idiots, get off of me! Eww, get off now! I can smell that stench, ah!"

"Boss, we can't! We're too afraid to move!" the yellow one declared.

"Morons, get out there and fight!"

"But boss, you don't understand! That monster staring at us, he's one of the strongest in the Monster Realm! He'll cream us!" the green one chattered nervously.

Clenching his right hand, Chazz snapped "I know he's strong, but you three losers are stronger!"

"Boss, you're not listening! He's way too strong for us!" the black one argued.

Laughter was heard across the field, making Chazz glance up at the sorcerer. "So, that's your big plan, eh? Calling those weaklings won't help you. They're known throughout the Monster Realm as the weakest among the weakest, and now I see personally why no one cares about them."

The three cowered even further behind Chazz. His vein popping out of his forehead, Chazz heatedly bit out "You don't know anything! These three are far stronger than you give them credit!"

Glancing over his shoulder, Chazz encouragingly said "You guys are so much stronger than you know. I wouldn't put my faith in you all unless I knew you could do the job. So, I'm asking you, please, help me beat this guy! We can beat him together!"

The three glanced back and forth between one another before finally the yellow one timidly said "Boss, we're… we're with you!"

Nodding, Chazz looked forward again, saying "Then get up here and help me out boys."

Slowly nodding to one another, the creatures leapt back in front of Chazz, taking up a defensive stance each. Glaring down at the group, the golden dragon roared softly, instantly causing the three to nearly bolt.

Each half turned away, but the yellow one stopped and turned back to face the dragon, saying "You can't scare me! I won't abandon Chazz!"

Hearing this, the two remaining creatures froze up and shakily turned to face the dragon. Trying hard to find their resolve, they nodded, each adding "Yeah!"

"Fools, you and your master shall fall in this battle." the sorcerer indifferently stated.

Chuckling, Chazz closed his eyes and wagged a finger, tauntingly saying "No, I don't think so."

Reopening his eyes, he smugly said "It's time to put a new spin on this duel."

Turning to Chazz, all three creatures looked with shock, with the yellow one asking "Do you mean…"

"Yep, it's time to put them in the spin cycle! I activate the spell card Ojama Delta Hurricane! Do your thing boys!"

Each smiling, but with a bit of fear, the three launched into the air. Calling out their color, the three finally placed their butts together, saying in unison "Ojama Delta Hurricane!"

Slowly, the three began swirling in a circle. Little by little, the group began spinning faster and faster, and the circle began widening. The three shifted the circles position, and moved it to right above the large golden dragon and the trio of knights. Once more widening the circle, the three increased the diameter till it encircled the large dragon and the knights. With a swift movement, the circle dropped down till it was at the middle of the dragon's body, at which point it came to a screeching halt. In a single motion, the circle tightened around the dragon, making it howl in pain. The circle soon began to shrink even more, making the dragon roar once more in tremendous pain. After what seemed like an eternity, the dragon finally exploded, sending out a shockwave and a dust cloud that destroyed the weaker knights below it.

The dust slowly began to settle from the explosion, revealing the three weaker creatures in front of Chazz with a big grin on each of their faces, as well as Chazz's. Chuckling, Chazz mockingly said "Looks like that dragon wasn't all that you thought it was!"

Growling loudly, the sorcerer snapped "You will pay for disrespecting Ra!"

Stopping his anger, the sorcerer smirked, saying "No matter, you did help me a bit. You see, when you destroyed my face down card, you activated it's effect!"

"What spell card?" Chazz asked, unsure of what the sorcerer spoke of.

Chuckling, the sorcerer calmly replied "The spell known as Spell Calling. When it's destroyed, I get a new quick-play spell card, which I must show you, so I pick this, my Poison of the Old Man."

Lightly chuckling, Chazz smirked, saying "That won't help you. For now though, it's your turn, so go wild." (CS 2000, Chazz 2700)

"Way to put the moves to him Chazz!" Jaden happily called out.

Nodding, Alexis added "You go Chazz! Take that guardian down!"

Smiling, Illidan silently said to himself "_Chazz, that was impressive. To take down The Winged Dragon of Ra so skillfully is truly impressive._"

Calming his expression, Illidan glided his eyes towards the sorcerer's field. "_Still, Chazz has a long ways to go before this duel is over. Come on, don't give up yet Chazz._"

Picking up a new card, the sorcerer lightly grunted, saying "I activate my face down card, Poison of the Old Man. With this, I gain 1200 life points. That will end my turn." (CS 3200, Chazz 2700)

Quickly drawing his next card, Chazz glanced at it for only a moment before slapping it to his Duel Disk, saying "It's time I showed you that I'm really serious! I summon Don Zaloog (1400/1500)!"

A muscular man with nearly shoulder length grey hair, a golden eye patch, a brown-grey sleeveless shirt with matching pants, a strap that went around his body full of bullets, and a pair of guns on his hips appeared with a small yell.

Looking around, he seemed to adjust his bearings, and finally turned to Chazz, asking "Chazz, what's going on?"

"He looks… familiar." Alexis murmured to Jaden.

Smiling, Jaden nodded, saying "He should. That's Don Zaloog, the card Chazz got when he beat him and his Dark Scorpion Gang."

Recognition appeared on Alexis's face, causing her to slightly smile, saying "Yes, I remember now. He won it when he beat them last year."

Curious, Illidan asked "What do you mean, beat them?"

"Oh yeah, you weren't here, that's right. Well, last year, when the Shadow Riders were attacking, Don Zaloog and his Dark Scorpion Gang came to infiltrate the school and take the Sacred Beast Cards. Unfortunately, Chazz figured out who they were, and that they were the fourth Shadow Rider group. Chazz dueled Don, and won. When he won, he got Don's Shadow Charm, but Don and his crew transformed into cards. We figured out finally that the group was actually just Duel Spirits. Chazz kindly adopted the group, but never played them till now." Jaden said in a long response.

Nodding, Illidan replied "I see. Interesting…"

"Yeah, you don't know the half of it, heh."

"I can hear you guys, you know!?" Chazz irritably yelled.

Rubbing the back of his head modestly, Jaden replied "Oops, sorry Chazz."

Grumbling, Chazz turned his attention back to the duel, and irritably said "Don, what does it look like is going on!"

Scratching his head, Don finally replied "I guess we're in a duel."

"No duh! Attack him directly with Double Barrel Blaster!"

Focusing his attention onto the sorcerer, Don pulled both blasters from his hips. In a succession of shots, he hit his target, making the sorcerer growl out in pain.

Smirking, Chazz calmly said "Nice work Don. Now that you've been damaged, Don's effect kicks in. I get to pick between you discarding a card from your hand or you sending two cards from the top of your deck to the Graveyard. I think I'll pick the first one, so say goodbye to a card in your hand!"

Growling louder when a random card was picked, the sorcerer glared at Chazz when his Premature Burial entered the Graveyard. "I will not be humiliated by a child!" he screamed out.

"Well, that's your problem. In the meantime, I'm going to chill out, so go on, take your turn." (CS 1800, Chazz 2700)

Angrily drawing a card, the sorcerer said "I play Pot of Greed, meaning I draw two new cards!"

Picking up two new cards, the sorcerer's demeanor changed slightly. A smile played upon his face. With it, came a calm voice, saying "I have you now. I activate the special ability of my remaining Thunder Dragon in my hand, so I send it to the Graveyard. Of course, since I have no more Thunder Dragon's in my deck, I only get to shuffle my deck. Now then, I activate the spell card Symbol of Heritage! I can only use this card when I have three of the same monster in my Graveyard. Since all three of my Thunder Dragons are now in my Graveyard, I can use it. With it, I bring back one of my dragons and equip this card to it, so rise up Thunder Dragon (1600/1500)!"

With a light roar, a green snake like dragon with two wings appeared. It coiled up on the field, seemingly waiting to strike.

"I sacrifice my Thunder Dragon in order to summon my Kaiser Glider (2400/2200)!"

In a flash, the green dragon vanished, only to be replaced by a golden dragon with what looked like metal skin. It had a pair of wings on it's back, two strong legs and two strong arms, with sharp clawed hands and feet. It let out a small roar, showing it's true strength.

Chuckling, the sorcerer continued on, saying "Kaiser Glider, show that Duel Spirit reject how we deal with traitors! Attack Don Zaloog with Glider Strike!"

Roaring in response, the dragon reared back it's head. Snapping it back forward quickly, a golden blast of energy came streaking from it's jaws. The blast struck the grey haired man quickly, making him scream out in pain. The blast soon went through the man and struck Chazz head on, making him drop to one knee.

Panting lightly, Chazz slowly stood up, asking with a taunting voice "Is that it?"

Chuckling darkly, the sorcerer replied "You will fall soon enough boy. I end my turn." (CS 1800, Chazz 1700)

"It's going down to the wire on this duel!" Jaden exclaimed.

With a twinge of worry in her voice, Alexis asked "How can you be so excited? Chazz could lose everything."

Smiling, Jaden cheerfully replied "I know Chazz can do it. That's why I'm not worried. He'll win, just watch."

"I wish I could be as confident as you are in him." Alexis murmured to herself.

Picking up a new card, Chazz examined it and said "I place a card face down. That's it for me." (CS 1800, Chazz 1700)

With quick movements, the sorcerer picked up his own new card and smirked, saying "I place a card face down myself. Now, Kaiser Glider, send that green runt packing with Glider Strike!"

Rearing back it's head once more, the gold dragon snapped his head forward and released a burst of golden energy, which easily destroy the small green monster in front of Chazz and sent up a small puff of smoke.

The smoke slowly rolled away from the blast that the green creature was hit with, leaving no trace of it. Smirking, the sorcerer called out "That only leaves two." (CS 1800, Chazz 1700)

Drawing a card, Chazz slightly grimaced and said "I pass this turn." (CS 1800, Chazz 1700)


	53. Chapter 53: Ra's Roar, Pt 3

**Hello once again everybody. Well, this week has been decently calm. Yesterday and today, we had visitors at work, which was cool. Things went well. I heard from my grandmother last night, and unfortunately, my grandfather went to the hospital again Tuesday night due to a high fever. Luckily, they got it down and it's not pneumonia, but they're unsure what caused the temperature spike. They're going to keep him another day or so to try and find out, but eh, hard to tell.**

**Story wise, **_**Another**_** is like a rocket on rails. I've decided that once I get to a certain point, I'll begin posting due that I think the first chapters are pretty solid now. I'm thinking once I get 20-25 chapters, which I'm halfway on that goal already. So, if there are any Inuyasha fan fic fans here, I'll have that up and going sometime. **_**FG**_** will continue to post as normal, so no worries, but **_**Another**_** will post at a slower rate due that it's not nearly finished at all. As for the sequel to this story… I'm thinking on what to do still, lol.**

**Last time, Chazz and CS's duel raged on, with Chazz finally regaining the upper hand, only to have it taken away once more. Can Chazz keep up this effort, or will it all end tragically?**

**Alright, time again for the fun part of the day! Review Time!**

**Isis the Sphinx: Cool. Lol, it sucks to have a headache. I've been getting one the last two days, but I'm guessing maybe due to the cold weather. It was warm up till yesterday. Hmm, Harpie Queen? Interesting sounding card. Thanks for the comment.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Lol, it's cool. It happens, hehe.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. True, I did originally plan on The Winged Dragon of Ra not being affected by Ojama Delta Hurricane, but then I thought about what else Chazz had to take it down, and I realized, not much, lol. So, I let the card take it down. Yeah, I know, in the show spells never affected the Egyptian God Cards very much, but I figured, eh, why not. Nope, this chapter, the duel ends. Thanks for the comments.**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Lol, thanks, I know, I thought the Ojama Trio bit was pretty nice.**

**ardee: I know, Ojama Delta Hurricane shouldn't affect Ra, but I let it. It's like I mentioned in Ultimate Legendary Master's review, there isn't much else in Chazz's deck to deal with the Egyptian God Card really. XYZ Dragon Cannon maybe, or some other monster effect like Armed Dragon LV10, but still, that's a harder combo to pull off. Yes, Anubis White is what I came up with. Heh, maybe the Society of Light borrowed the uniforms… True, Anubis seems evil, but remember, he's surrounded by a white aura always, hence where the white came from. Interesting that there was an Exodia Gold idea. True, Zell and Legato seem missing… Maybe they're busy plotting. Nah, I don't mind if you add me to AIM. Heh, if I'm ever on, maybe we can talk. I'm rarely on anymore due to a busy life.**

**Well, that's it for this round. Thank you everyone for the reviews, I really enjoyed them. For now, I'm out, so enjoy!**

**Chapter 53**

Quickly drawing a new card, the sorcerer smirked and said "You'll never beat me at that rate, but little does that matter to me. Now, watch as I activate the trap card Conscription! This flips the top card on your deck, and if it's a monster that can be summoned without a tribute, it is special summoned to my field. Otherwise, the card is added to your hand. Let us see what you have!"

Grudgingly, Chazz flipped the top card on his deck and showed it. Chuckling loudly, the sorcerer called out "I see it is a monster! It is mine now!"

The card suddenly flew from Chazz's fingers and into the sorcerer's, who smirked even more. Slapping it to his Duel Disk, he called out "Rise up mighty X-Head Cannon (1800/1500), and fight for me!"

Beside of the golden dragon, a blue and yellow machine creature formed. It had a pair of cannon barrels sticking out of it's chest, a orb on the bottom of it's body instead of feet, and a pair of strong machine arms.

Laughing darkly, the sorcerer called out "Attack your former master now X-Head Cannon!"

Aiming both barrels at the black creature in front of Chazz, the machine creature began to build up power. Golden energy could be seen growing at the tips of the barrels. After a few moments, a pair of twin blasts came flying out of the barrels. The pair struck the black creature, who cried out in pain before it was fully vanquished.

"Finish off that last pathetic creature now Kaiser Glider with Glider Strike!"

Snapping it's head back, the dragon's jaws began to glow with golden energy. Instantaneously, the dragon swung it's head around, launching it's attack. The sphere of golden energy struck the yellow creature, which screamed out when it was struck "Help me boss!"

The smoke soon cleared, revealing a clear field between Chazz and the sorcerer's monsters. Smirking, the sorcerer calmly said "I place a card face down. Next turn, I will finish you." (CS 1800, Chazz 1700)

Drawing his next card, Chazz slightly smirked. "We'll see. I activate the spell Ojamandala, which lets me pay a 1000 points. Thanks to that, I get my boys back, so come on back Ojama Yellow (0/1000), Ojama Black (0/1000), and Ojama Green (0/1000)!"

One by one, the three odd creatures in pink bikinis rose up on the field, each taking a defensive stance.

"Thanks boss, you're the best!" the yellow creature said.

Pulling the remaining card from his hand, Chazz said "Before I end, I play the spell the Goblin Negotiator. Once a turn, I turn all damage one of my monsters would receive to zero. Of course, when I do this, you get to draw a card for it. For now, that's it." (CS 1800, Chazz 700)

With a simple motion, the sorcerer drew his new card and began laughing uncontrollably. Pointing a finger at Chazz, he called out "You're finished! I activate my trap card, Call of the Haunted! I use it to now bring an old friend back, so welcome back to the field my Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon (2800/2100)!"

The red twin headed dragon with a large horn on their noses rose up, letting out a massive roar.

"Time for you to lose! I play the spell card now that will finish you, once and for all! I activate Monster Reborn, so return to me my mighty Egyptian God! Rise up once more The Winged Dragon of Ra (0/0)!"

A golden glow began to fill the sorcerer's Graveyard Slot. Without warning, a brilliant golden light flooded the room. From the light, the massive golden metal dragon came from it. It's massive wings spread, and it stretched it's body out. Glaring down at Chazz, it let out a massive roar, shaking the room greatly.

"BOSS!" cried out the yellow creature in front of Chazz with great fear.

Standing perfectly still, Chazz only shot a challenging glare back at the dragon. Seeing no fear, the dragon roared once more, making the three weaker creatures in front of Chazz wet their pants once more.

Seeing their fear, Chazz barked out "Don't be afraid boys. He's all bark and no bite. He doesn't even have a single attack point. That Egyptian God is just as strong as the three of you are right now."

Chuckling darkly, the sorcerer smugly said "For now Ra is weak, but just wait. I think it is time to introduce you to Ra's true form. I pay 1000 life points in order to release Ra's most devastating form! Transform Ra into Phoenix God Ra!"

With a mighty roar, the powerful dragon began glowing brightly. Cracks formed within it's metallic armor causing blinding golden light to flood through them. The temperature within the room itself also began to climb. Heat seemingly from nowhere was flooding it, making the temperature sweltering.

"Man, it's getting hot in here!" Jaden commented while pulling his jacket off.

Wiping the sweat from her brow, Alexis smartly remarked "At least you can take some clothes off. If I lose anything, I'll be nearly indecent"

"Ah, what are you talking about? It wouldn't matter to any of us if you stripped…"

Smacking Jaden in the back of the head, Illidan growled out "Don't finish that comment!"

Nodding, Jaden silenced himself and watched a smug Alexis wipe the sweat off her head once more.

"Boss, it's getting hot out here!" cried out the yellow creature, who was shielding his body with his arms.

"We're roasting!" the black one added.

The green one though had a bottle of sun block in his hand and was applying it, saying "Ah, it's just a little sun guys. We can work on our tans."

"IDIOTS, SHUT UP!" Chazz roared in anger.

The three creatures shrank back at the words, but the sorcerer only laughed. "You fools, you're about to face the most terrifying creature ever, yet you bicker! Well then, bicker over this!"

Pointing to the golden dragon, the sorcerer bellowed "Ra, show them your true form now!"

Roaring loudly, the dragon glowed even brighter, causing the temperature to increase even more. Without warning, the metal skin covering the dragon blew off of the dragon's body, revealing flames. The flames formed a large fire ball for a few moments before the form of a massive phoenix came out. With a mighty screech, the phoenix beat it's wings to make it lift higher into the air. The mighty phoenix let out yet another screech, making the three weak creatures guarding Chazz wet themselves again.

"What is that thing!?" Chazz screamed out in shock.

"Boss, this is bad! That's The Winged Dragon of Ra's true form!" the yellow creature cried out in fear.

"He'll bake us alive!" the black one added.

"We're toast!" the green one input.

Laughing loudly, the sorcerer pointed at the three creatures, saying "Incinerate them now Ra!"

With a mighty screech, the phoenix swooped in and set the three creatures ablaze. Their horrified screams were echoed throughout the room. After a long moment, their charred remains vanished, leaving Chazz wide open.

Returning to the side of it's master, the phoenix formed into a sphere of flames once more and emitted a brilliant golden light. The light finally died, revealing the powerful golden dragon once more.

Smirking evilly, the sorcerer mockingly said "You are finished. It is time to put the final nail in your coffin. Ra, I sacrifice my three monsters to you, so add their power to your power (0 + 2400 + 1800 + 2800 7000/0 + 2200 + 1500 + 2100 5800)!"

The smaller golden dragon, the blue and yellow machine creature, and the twin headed red dragon all three vanished in a flash of golden light. At the same time, the mighty golden dragon began to glow with a mighty golden glow. Bit by bit, the dragon's impressive power grew. After a moment of powering up, the dragon released a mighty roar, shaking the building.

"And now, I will help Ra end your misery by activating another of Ra's effects! I transfer all but one of my life points to Ra, thus increasing his power even more (7000 + 1799 8799/5800 + 1799 7599)! Now Ra, let us merge!"

The sorcerer glowed darkly for a moment before he vanished. Within moments, laughter was heard once more, and the sorcerer reappeared on Ra's head. He was now merged with Ra and embedded up to his waist in the mighty dragon's skull.

"You did well mortal, but not well enough. Ra, finish this with …"

Hearing chuckling, the sorcerer glared at Chazz, yelling "Why are you laughing!?"

Looking up with a smug look, Chazz cockily replied "Because you seem to have forgotten who you're dueling. I'm Chazz Princeton, better known as The Chazz! I don't go down that easily!"

"Fool, you're finished. Just accept it!"

Still chuckling, Chazz pointed a finger at the sorcerer and smirked, saying "You're the fool. Remember, I still have a card in play and I have the means to play it!"

Checking to see the face down card, the sorcerer lightly growled, saying "You have nothing!"

Turning his palm to his face down card, Chazz smugly said "Wrong again! Time to show you what you're up against when you face The Chazz! I reveal my trap, Ojama Delta Brief! Thanks to this little baby, I can revive all three of my Ojamas, so welcome back boys (0/1000) x 3!"

One by one, the three creatures that had been guarding Chazz returned, each taking up a defensive stance. Turning back to Chazz, the three smiled, each saying simultaneously "Thanks boss!"

Growling in frustration, the sorcerer fumed. Seeing this, Chazz only laughed, saying "I knew you'd try to blast me to kingdom come, so I planned out this turn perfectly. As I predicted, you threw everything you had into Ra in order to smite me, but guess what, it didn't work! Now you're finished, because at the end of this turn, Ra will return to the Graveyard, and you'll only have one life point left!"

Infuriated even further, the sorcerer screamed out "You will pay for this, and it will start with that foolish yellow creature! Ra, obliterate it with Blaze Cannon!"

Opening it's massive jaws, the dragon created a sphere of energy within the arc on it's back. The flaming sphere swirled continuously till finally energy began traveling down wires to it's jaws. A glow began to form within the dragon's mouth, showing signs that it's power was building. After what seemed like an eternity, the dragon spat a blast of golden energy at the small yellow creature, who was frozen in shock.

"HELP ME BOSS!" he cried out with the blast nearing.

Chuckling, Chazz called out "Don't sweat it Ojama Yellow. I activate my spell card, Goblin Negotiator, which means Ojama Yellow survives this blast!"

A small green shield suddenly appeared in front of the yellow creature, which smiled great big. The incredible blast struck the barrier, sending out flames and golden energy throughout the room. Slowly, the blast subsided, leaving the yellow creature in one piece.

"That was close boss. Thanks!" the creature said with a smile.

Growling with frustration, the sorcerer said "Don't forget, by activating that card, I get to draw one card."

"Yeah, yeah." Chazz replied with a wave.

Picking up a new card, the sorcerer grinned, saying "That was foolish my friend. I would have lost had you not made that move. Now, prepare yourself, for I activate the spell De-Fusion, allowing me to separate my body from Ra's."

A small golden glow enveloped the field momentarily. Once the glow died, the sorcerer stood beside of Ra with a smirk.

"When I separated from Ra, his attack points become my life points, so that means I get a nice boost."

Growling in frustration, Chazz couldn't help but watch the sorcerer's life points climb to new heights. "I will beat you still." Chazz gruffly said.

Chuckling, the sorcerer remarked "I doubt that. I end my turn, so do as you please." (CS 8800, Chazz 700)

"Chazz was so close, but now he's got to whittle down that guys life points again. It'll take forever!" Alexis said with a bit of irritation.

Nodding, Jaden replied "Don't worry about it. I think Chazz can pull it off still."

"_I hope so._" Illidan silently remarked.

Drawing his next card, Chazz called out "I play Pot of Greed, so two new cards for me!"

Picking up two, he smirked lightly, saying "Next, I play the spell Roll of Fate! This card is a little complicated, so I'll slow it down for you. I roll a die first, and whatever the result of the die is, is the number of cards I get to draw. After I draw, I must ditch the same amount of cards from my deck that I drew. So, let's see how lucky I am right now!"

A blue die materialized onto the field in front of Chazz. With a little roll in the air, it was flung forward and began rolling. After a moment, it finally stopped on six, making Chazz smirk.

"Six cards, eh? Well, that is helpful!"

Picking up six new cards, Chazz examined his new hand before picking up six more and placing them in his Graveyard Slot. Examining his hand once more, Chazz took a few moments to ponder over his cards before calling out "Time to kick things off, and I start by playing the spell Trap Booster! Thanks to this little baby, I get to send a card to my Grave and activate a trap from my hand. I'll send Z-Metal Tank to my Grave so I can play the trap Ojama Trio!"

On the sorcerer's field, three creatures began to form. Once they had formed, the sorcerer saw that they were exact clones of the creatures on Chazz's field.

"What is this!?" the sorcerer demanded.

Chuckling, Chazz wagged a finger, saying "It's simple. This is my trap card's effect. It creates three Ojama Tokens (0/1000) on your field in defense. Oh, by the way, if any of them happen to get destroyed, you lose 300 points per a token."

Softly growling, the sorcerer slightly calmed down, saying "No matter, I'll just use them as fodder for Ra."

"Not quite." Chazz smartly remarked.

"What's that?!"

Smirking, Chazz wagged his finger once more, saying "You see, those tokens, they can't be sacrificed."

"WHAT!?" the sorcerer roared in anger.

"Those tokens can't be sacrificed, so they won't be Ra's chew toys anytime soon." Chazz smugly replied.

Turning his attention back to his hand, Chazz said "Time I kick things up a notch, so I activate the spell Polymerization, fusing my Ojamas together to create Ojama King (0/3000)!"

Slowly, the three creatures on Chazz's field began to swirl together. Once they did, a puff of smoke appeared, hiding a new figure from sight. The smoke slowly cleared, revealing a fat like white creature with tentacle eyes, a pair of red bikini bottoms, a green cape on it's back, a crown on it's head, and finally a large smile with gross looking teeth that looked like they hadn't been brushed in years. Standing before the group, he cried out "Oh yeah baby!"

Jaden, along with Alexis and Illidan, each sweat dropped at the creature, with Jaden finally saying "Ok…"

Slightly chuckling, the sorcerer finally burst out loud laughing, saying "That foolish creature is even weaker than the three that created it!"

Smirking, Chazz calmly replied "You'll see. Now then, where was I? Oh yeah, about to kick your butt! I activate the equip spell card Shield Attack. Thanks to this card, my Ojama King's attack points swap with his defense points (3000/0)!"

Slightly growling, the sorcerer smartly remarked "No matter, he's far too weak to beat me still."

"You'll see who is weak soon enough. I activate another spell card, this one known simply as Ojamuscle. This little handy card now destroys all Ojama monsters, except for my Ojama King. Once that happens, he then gains 1000 attack points per a destroyed Ojama. Since you have those three Ojama Tokens, that means Ojama King will gain 3000 more points (3000 + 3000 6000/0)!"

The sorcerer could only watch in shock while the large white creature opened up his mouth and began sucking up the three weaker tokens. Within moments, they were gone, and the large white creature flexed his now beefy biceps.

Calling quickly, Chazz said "Oh yeah, one last thing. Remember what I said about if the tokens get destroyed? Well, time for a refresher. You lose 300 points per a token, so now you take 900 total damage!"

Slowly, a red glow surrounded the sorcerer. After a few moments, it intensified and squeezed him, making him lightly cry out in pain. Shrugging it off, he smirked, saying "You still can't beat me."

"Oh yeah? Well then, you won't mind me playing another spell card then. It's called Monster Reborn, so I'm sure you remember it! I use this to bring back my Armed Dragon LV5 (2400/1700)!"

Rising up onto the field once more was a mighty orange skinned dragon with thick dull grey metal armor. Letting out a roar, the dragon made the sorcerer slightly flinch.

Eyes widening, the sorcerer slowly said "It isn't possible…"

"It is, and now things are about to come crashing down! Armed Dragon, show him what you got! Direct attack with Infernal Roar!"

Moving forward with it's clawed hands raised, the dragon began spinning his arms rapidly and slashed the sorcerer with both hands. Grasping his chest in pain, the sorcerer slid backwards a little bit, but managed to stay standing.

Pointing a finger defiantly, Chazz smugly called out "You claimed the Ojamas were weak, but now you're about to find out how wrong you were! Ojama King, attack that freak with Flying Body Slam!"

Leaping into the air, the large white creature let out a small laugh. Once the creature had leveled out and lost all momentum, he began his descent towards the sorcerer, who could only watch with shock on his face. With incredible speed, the large white creature came flying downwards and slammed his large body into the sorcerer, seemingly crushing him flat.

Dust flew all around the room, blocking out everyone's view. Once the dust settled, the large white creature was seen back on Chazz's field while the sorcerer lay on the ground. His life points quickly drained away to zero, causing the duel to end. The sorcerer's Duel Disk vanished in a small flash of light while Chazz's simply powered down. With this happening, the large white creature vanished as well, but not before giving a smile to Chazz.

Walking to the sorcerer, Chazz boldly stated "I told you not to mess with the Ojamas. Now you know their power, and that they're truly stronger than you thought. Remember it, for The Chazz has spoken!"

Lightly chuckling, the sorcerer stood up with a bit of difficulty. Brushing his clothes off, the sorcerer calmly said "Well met young mortal. You did teach me that the Ojamas do possibly have some power within them."

Handing Chazz a card, the sorcerer continued with "As agreed, since I lost, you win this, The Winged Dragon of Ra. Ra is strong, but I'm sure you can handle it."

Taking the card, Chazz brought it up to look at. Slightly smiling, he placed the card within his deck, saying "Thanks."

"What now Master?" the sorcerer asked when he saw Illidan walking up to the two.

Lightly smiling, Illidan said "You are relieved of your guardianship duties Chaos Sorcerer. I have a favor to request of you. I ask that you once more join me in my journeys. I have need for your help in order to rescue Marie."

"Marie? What happened to her?" the sorcerer asked with great concern.

Sighing, Illidan quickly explained the situation. Once he finished, the sorcerer quickly said "I pledge my loyalty to you once more. I will help you save your beloved. It would be an honor to serve you once more Master."

Nodding, Illidan simply replied "Thank you. Come then, let us go."

Smiling at Illidan, the sorcerer began glowing black. Pulling a blank card out, Illidan held it out towards the sorcerer. A moment afterward, the sorcerer dematerialized and the card began to glow black. Seconds later, an imaged formed on the card. Slowly, yet surely, the image of the sorcerer who had fought Chazz took shape. It finally finished, and the black glow diminished.

Placing the card in his deck holder, Illidan smiled at the others, saying "We're done here."

Each nodded in response and Illidan led the way back out of the shrine.


	54. Chapter 54: Flames of Anger, Pt 1

**Hello again everyone. Well, it's a new week once again, with new things going on. My poor mate, she got sick Saturday night and felt so bad Sunday morning. She got better throughout the day, and is nearly back to normal. Thursday night, Friday, and part of Saturday, I had such a killer headache. I'm not one to usually take one, but I had one killer one for those three days. I finally got over it, but still, it wasn't something I enjoyed. It was so bad, I didn't go see my grandfather Friday due that it hurt my head just to drive home from work, so I knew a half an hour drive was out of the picture. Oh well, I'm going tonight, and then Wednesday, and possibly Friday.**

**Since my last time on, I got a great deal of work done on **_**Another**_**. I'm hoping, if I keep up this pace, to start posting on it in a week or two. It's just a matter of time I suppose. Once it's going, I hopefully will get some ideas on the sequel to this story. I have some, but they're mostly vague…**

**Last time, Chazz defeated Chaos Sorcerer to earn him The Winged Dragon of Ra. Upon receiving it, Illidan asked CS to join him once more, which willingly did and now the group are leaving the shrine. With Slifer being the next card to collect, can Jaden manage to complete the task?**

**Alright, time once again for the best part of the day! Review Time!**

**pink-kiss-candy: Yep, they're strong, lol. Very strong, hehe.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Lol, yes, I liked the tan part, along with other parts. I'm surprised I didn't get many laughs from everyone over the Ojamas' antics. Nah, I've not seen the abridged series of Yugioh. I did watch an episode of the abridged Fullmetal Alchemist, which it seemed funny at first, but eh, I prefer the original I suppose. Yep, Slifer's coming up next. Thanks for the comments.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Hurray! Oh wait, it was TGIF… Good for you that school is only 2 days. The same for work for me, hehe. I'm taking Wednesday off, and I have Thursday and Friday off anyways, so hurray! Lol, nice dance. Thanks for the comments.**

**ardee: Thanks. So true, you have to almost always special summon Ra from the Graveyard and do it's Phoenix form and then point-to-point. Thanks. Very true, the Ojamas can be deadly, if used right, I suppose, lol. Very true, the monarchs are the true power in the game currently. Heh, I only had one monster to really counter them for the most part, which was Kaiser Glider. I know, corny and dumb, but hey, with few playing equips and if I was able to keep it out, it worked. True, Chaos still rules traditional yet. I always played advanced format though, since everyone else seemed to. A Namine stunt, me? Nah… Cool about adding me. Lol, I stayed on some this weekend, but I realized we maybe in different time zones, plus could be on at different times. I'm normally on at night, like 9 or later, and I'm in the Eastern Standard Time zone, so if that helps, use it. Thanks for the comments.**

**x-knight20: Thanks. The idea for Anubis actually came from a rumor I had heard about the Egyptian Gods had a fusion form. When I got to thinking about it, I thought, why not make my own version since I hadn't seen or heard what the form was yet. So, I began thinking about it, and it occurred to me finally to do Anubis, the God of Life and Death, since I had read up on the real one. Well, when I finished up, I was satisfied, and decided that it would be a great card. Of course, later in the Yugioh series, they had a fusion of the Gods be the Creator of Light, but eh, I like Anubis better, lol.**

**Thanks for all the reviews everyone. Wow, I'm nearing the 300 mark, and we've got a ways to go yet. I think this story will most definitely top **_**TWS**_** in reviews, which will be exciting to see. As for topping **_**ToP**_**, eh, I doubt it. Like **_**TWS**_**, this story isn't as long as **_**ToP**_**, but it is longer than **_**TWS**_**, so we'll see. Length wise though, this story has **_**TWS**_** beat, most definitely. **_**TWS**_** had 230k in words (rounded #), and this one so far has 206k (rounded) so far, and there is more to come. I don't think I'll beat **_**ToP**_**'s stats in words or reviews, but I'm more than willing to try. We'll just have to see.**

**Ok, that's all for this round. I hope you all enjoy this chapter. Bye for now!**

**Chapter 54**

Emerging from the shrine, the group was greeted by the setting sun. Checking the time, Illidan called out "We'll go eat and then we'll head back here."

The group simply nodded and began the trek back towards the dorms. Not even a hundred feet from the shrines though, the group was stopped by a figure leaning up against a tree.

Looking the figure over, they saw that he had shoulder blade length red hair that was somewhat spiked and a Ra Yellow jacket. His eyes were closed, as if he was waiting for something. Hearing the group approaching, he opened his eyes to reveal aqua colored eyes.

"About time you guys got here. I see you survived the guardian there Chazz." the young man mockingly said.

Slightly curious, Illidan calmly asked "Axel, why are you out here?"

Pushing off of the tree, Axel stood before the group, saying "I'm here to take Chazz's Egyptian God Card. My Master has great need for it."

"Zell again, eh? Well, unlike your last friend, you'll have to get through me to get to Chazz!" Illidan stated. Putting his arms out in front of the group, he took up a protective position, showing his intentions.

Turning his palm towards Illidan, Axel calmly said "It has nothing to do with you, now step aside."

Shaking his head, Illidan remained where he stood. Shrugging, Axel simply said "Fine then, I'll make you move."

Within a millisecond, Axel formed a flaming sphere of energy and released it straight at Illidan, who went to block, only to be met by a small explosion from the sphere. The explosion threw Illidan rolling to the side of the group, leaving them exposed.

"I want you, and you alone Chazz. How about it, think you can handle that?" Axel questioned.

Smirking, Chazz simply replied "Count on it. I'll make short work of you."

Quickly getting up, Illidan called out "NO CHAZZ! Don't duel him! That's what Zell wants you to do!"

"I'm not one to back down Professor Illidan, and I'm not going to now." Chazz replied with calmness.

Moving to a small clearing, Axel and Chazz moved into position to duel. Both quickly shuffled their decks and placed them back into their Duel Disks, which instantly activated each. Each Duel Disk released their hidden slots and fully came to life. Simultaneously, Chazz and Axel drew five cards and called out "Game on!"

Drawing his sixth card, Axel said "Since I'm challenging you, I'll go first. You're in for a long and grueling duel, so sit back and strap in. Oh yeah, and one more thing."

Pushing his hair back with his right hand, Axel seriously said "I will end you. Memorize it!"

That said, the field darkened as a black sphere appeared around the two. The sphere was transparent, but was clearly darker than previously.

"A Shadow Game…" Illidan mouthed. "_Hang on Chazz. I know you're worn out, but you have to hang on to win this duel._"

Taking a card from his hand, Axel slapped it to his Duel Disk, saying "I summon Fox Fire (300/200) in defense."

A small red fox with a red flame on the tip of it's tail appeared onto the field sitting on it's hind feet.

"To end, I set two cards face down. Let's see if you can do anything." (Axel 8000, Chazz 8000)

Picking up his new card, Chazz only chuckled, saying "You are so dumb. Since you had something to say, I think it's time I shared something with you. It's time I Chazzed you up! Memorize that!"

Slightly annoyed, Axel simply said "Just go already."

"Gladly! I summon Armed Dragon LV3 (1200/900)!"

Appearing on the field was a small orange skinned dragon with dull grey metal armor. Opening it's mouth, it clamed down making a clanging sound while it also smacked it's punching glove like fists together.

"Armed Dragon, attack that pitiful fox with Armor Punch!"

Leaping forward, the dragon raised it's punching glove like hands and pulled back it's right arm.

Before it could make it, Axel called out "You fell into my trap! I activate Backfire! Thanks to this, when a Fire Attribute monster is destroyed, you lose 500 life points!"

Chazz could only slightly growl in frustration while he watched his dragon continuing forward. In a quick release, the dragon struck the fox hard, making the fox cry out in pain when it shattered into pieces. Once the fox disappeared, the trap card on Axel's field began to glow with red fire. From the card came a blast of flames straight at Chazz, scorching him. The flames did no damage, but Chazz was lightly smoking from the hit.

"I'll set this face down and call it a …"

Chuckling, Axel wagged his finger, saying "Not quite yet Chazz. My Fox Fire has a very special ability. You see, when he's destroyed while face up, I get to bring him back in the End Phase of the turn he was destroyed. So, Fox Fire (300/200), come on back!"

A small flame on the field ignited. Slowly, from the flame came the small fox creature, taking up a defensive stance once more.

Growling with irritation, Chazz gruffly said "Fine, I end my move then." (Axel 8000, Chazz 7500)

Smirking while he drew, Axel said "I think it's time I turned up the heat."

Opening his field spell slot, Axel continued with "Let's crank up the heat with the field spell Molten Destruction!"

Once the slot closed, the field shimmered for a moment before a large volcano came out of the ground. The surrounding field soon turned brown and destitute. Lava came shooting out of the top of the volcano, making the entire group somewhat shrink back a bit.

"While my Molten Destruction is in play, all Fire attribute monsters gain 500 more attack points, but lose 400 defense points, but hey, that's all good. So, my little Fox Fire gets a bit stronger (300 + 500 800/200 – 400 0)."

The small fox slightly glowed while the flame on it's tail began to burn brighter.

"Next, I summon Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV4 (1600 + 500 2100/1000 – 400 600)."

A silver metallic looking bird like dragon materialized onto the field with it's wings folded up.

"Now then, I switch Fox Fire into attack mode, and Horus, show 'The Chazz' what real dragon is like! Attack his pathetic Armed Dragon with Black Flame Burst!"

Letting out a small shriek, the silver dragon launched itself into the air. Taking aim, the dragon opened it's jaws and released a stream of black flames that struck the small orange skinned dragon. The incredible heat easily destroyed it, allowing the remaining black flames to hit Chazz, who could only shield his body from the heat. Fresh smoke began to pour off of his body, but Chazz remained standing.

"Fox Fire, show Chazz you're more than a pretty face! Flaming Fox Tail Lash!"

Rushing forward, the little red fox bound straight for Chazz. Leaping into the air, the fox spun around, smacking it's tail into Chazz's face, making him take a few steps backwards.

"I think that'll do it for now. Oh yeah, by the way, since I'm moving to my End Phase, my dragon's effect kicks in. Since he destroyed a monster in battle, he evolves into Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV6 (2300/1600)!"

The small silver dragon was suddenly hidden by black flames. From the flames, large silver wings came out, along with a long silver tail, a pair of powerful talon legs, and finally the main body of the silver metal dragon was seen. It still looked like a large bird, but a much more powerful bird.

"Unfortunately, Horus is unaffected by spell cards, which means my field spell doesn't help him grow stronger, but that is alright. Memorize that effect, if you value your life points." (Axel 8000, Chazz 5800)

Staring at the duel, Illidan muttered "Chazz can't keep taking hits like that."

Hearing Illidan, Jaden nodded, adding "I know, but Chazz is tough. He'll make it."

"I hope, because at this rate, it'll be over before long." Alexis commented.

Preparing to draw his card, Chazz silently pondered what to do. Knowing he had no choice but to continue, he drew his card and smirked. "You may have gotten to me last turn, but no more! I activate the spell Graceful Charity, so I draw three cards, but I get to send two to the Grave when I'm done."

Picking up three new cards, he smirked even more and picked out two cards. Holding them up for Axel to see, he said "I send Ojamagic and Enchanting Fitting Room to my Graveyard."

Placing the cards into his Graveyard Slot, he watched at the two slowly slid in. Once more smirking, Chazz continued saying "By the way, when I send the spell Ojamagic to my Graveyard, it's effect goes off. Now I can add the three Ojama Brothers to my hand."

Searching his deck, he picked out all three and placed them within his hand. "Time to kick things up a notch, so I play the spell Ojama Get Ride! With this little baby, I can send the three Ojamas from my hand to my Graveyard and special summon any level four or lower Machine type monsters in defense. The three I pick are X-Head Cannon (1800/1500), Y-Dragon Head (1500/1600), and Z-Metal Tank (1500/1300)!"

One by one, the three machines materialized onto the field. The first was a blue and yellow robot that floated on a sphere and had a pair of large cannon barrels stuck out of it's chest. The next was a red mechanical dragon with a pair of long wings. Finally, a blue and yellow tank like creature appeared.

"Now I remove all three from play in order to fuse them together, so come together my XYZ-Dragon Cannon (2800/2600)!"

Launching into the air by use of their thrusters, the three machine creatures began to form into one creature. The tank became the bottom and took up position while waiting for the other two to link up. Slowly, the red dragon's wings broke off of it's body and it retracted it's head. The large blue robot creature lowered itself into a port within the dragon's back and linked up, before finally the two came crashing down onto the blue and yellow tank, which hooked up as well. A bit of electricity flashed through the air when the three finally fully powered up.

"I'm far from done though, for activate the spell Ojamandala. I pay 1000 life points to bring back all three of my Ojamas, so welcome back Ojama Yellow (0/1000), Ojama Green (0/1000), and Ojama Black (0/1000)!"

A yellow creature with eyes on tentacles and large lips, accompanied by a black creature with a big nose, and finally a green creature with a single eye all three emerged onto the field. With each standing on a horizontal card image, the three creatures in pink bikini briefs yelled out "Tada!"

Slightly sweat dropping, Axel chuckled and shook his hand, using his right hand to cover his face. "Those three things are pathetic."

Smirking at this, Chazz smartly said "You may think they're pathetic right now, but wait till they clean your clock. Boys, I think it's time we show everyone your newest trick!"

"You mean it boss?" the yellow creature asked with hopefulness.

Getting a nod back from Chazz, all three creatures smiled happily. Seeing this, Chazz called out "I play the spell Ojama Delta Thunder!"

Leaping into the air, the yellow creature called out "Let's go guys!"

In unison, the remaining two called back "Right!"

Placing their butts together, the three cried out "Ojama Delta Thunder!"

"Uh, what are they doing?" Axel asked with a curious look.

Chuckling, Chazz replied "They're about to tear you apart. You see, I'm going to activate Ojama Delta Thunder's secondary effect also, so I need to send Ojama Delta Hurricane to my Graveyard from my deck."

Taking the card out of his deck and placing it into his Graveyard, Chazz pointed at Axel and said "Boys, do your thing!"

The three creatures nodded and began spinning rapidly. While they spun, lightning formed around them till a twister with several lightning bolts shooting off of it became visible overhead of Axel and his monsters.

"What the!?" Axel mouthed with uncertainty.

With little warning, the tornado descended, striking Axel and his creatures. The small fox was instantly hit, along with the two cards on his field while the silver dragon only seemed to remain untouched. Lastly, his hand holding his cards was struck, sending a bolt of lightning through his body, making him scream out in pain. The pain was too intense, and he finally fell to his knees, panting heavily.

Once the storm quieted, the three weaker creatures fell from the sky and back onto the horizontal card images. They were lightly panting, but each smirked at their handiwork.

"Nice job boys." Chazz commented.

Unsure of what happened, Jaden asked "What was that?"

"I'm… not sure." Illidan flatly stated.

Seeing everyone was curious to what happened, Chazz chuckled and said "Since no one knows that happened just now, I'll explain it, slowly. Ojama Delta Thunder first does 500 points of damage per a card on the Axel's field, plus the number of cards in his hand. Finally, when I sent Ojama Delta Hurricane to my Graveyard, I got to destroy everything on Axel's field."

"Not quite… everything." Axel struggled to say as he stood up once more.

Looking to see what Axel meant, Chazz slightly gasped. The silver dragon still remained, unfazed at all. Growling, Chazz roughly asked "Why is that thing not dead!?"

With labored breaths, Axel chuckled and began explaining. "Remember, I told you to memorize something. Well, it was my dragon's effect. He isn't affected by spell cards, so he can't be destroyed by that pathetic storm."

Shrugging, Chazz simply replied "No matter. You still took a good hit. After all, you hold two cards in your hand, plus four cards on your field, already excluding your dragon. That's a hefty 3000 points of damage, which isn't anything easy to smirk about. Plus, I destroyed everything you had."

Slightly smirking, Axel said "You also did me a favor. You destroyed my face down trap card, Dormant Volcano! When it gets destroyed, you lose 300 life points!"

Suddenly, the ground beneath of Chazz began to steam up. Cracks immediately formed and an explosion of hot lava came shooting out, striking Chazz. He cried out in pain, but stood after the lava receded.

"Oh yeah, by the way, since you destroyed my trap, in one turn, we each get to add a Fire monster to our hands. Be grateful I helped you out."

Slightly snarling at this, Chazz snapped out "Very well then, but prepare to lose it all! XYZ-Dragon Cannon, I activate your effect. By sending this card, my Ojamachine Yellow, to my Grave, I can destroy a card on your field, and I choose your dragon!"

Aiming it's twin cannons, the combo machine creature released a pair of twin laser blasts at the dragon. The blast hit hard, smashing it into pieces.

"XYZ-Dragon Cannon, direct attack with Cannon Burst!"

With deadly aim, the weapons on the combo creature released a group of laser blasts, each just as strong as the other. The series of blasts soon struck Axel head on, who was knocked to his hands and knees while panting heavily.

Smirking at his handiwork, Chazz mockingly asked "Had enough!? Well, in case you haven't, I end my turn, so do your worst!" (Axel 2200, Chazz 4500)

Very slowly, Axel stood back up. Bit by bit, his breathing evened out, till finally he was no longer panting. Glaring at Chazz, he drew his card, but smirked. "You're going to love this. I activate the spell Premature Burial, which lets me bring back my Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV6 (2300/1600) from my Graveyard."

Reappearing onto the field in a sphere of black flames, the dragon dispersed the flames and took up an offensive stance.

"Next, I activate the spell card Level Up, which lets me trade in my level six Horus for Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV8 (3000/1800)!"

A large sphere of black flames surrounded the silver dragon in a flash. From the flames came a larger set of silver metal wings, a longer tail, stronger talon legs, powerful silver arms, and at long last, a large silver head. With a massive roar, the flames dispersed.

"Horus, obliterate that tin can with Darkness Flames!"

Roaring once more, the dragon beat it's massive wings. Lifting off of the ground, the dragon opened it's jaws, revealing black flames in it's mouth. Breathing out, the flames came spewing out in a stream straight for the machine creature. The blast tore through it easily, leaving the mechanical monster dismantled.

Chazz could only growl with irritation, but Axel chuckled at this. "You will fail to beat me Chazz. For now, I'll end my turn with a face down. Make your move." (Axel 1400, Chazz 4300)

Picking up a card, Chazz slightly frowned once more. When he was about to speak, Axel cut in, saying "Sorry, but I must remind you about Dormant Volcano. Remember, we each get a Fire Attribute monster now."

Pulling his deck out, Axel quickly glanced through it and picked a card, saying "I pick my Gaia Soul the Combustible Collective. How about you?"

Looking through his deck, Chazz finally muttered "I have no Fire Attribute monsters."

Shrugging, Axel smartly remarked "Too bad. Now, continue whatever it was you were doing."

Slightly growling at the comment, Chazz remarked "You'll eat those words. I play the spell Polymerization! Time for some fusion …"

"Not quite." Axel interrupted. "How quickly you forget about my dragon."

"What do you mean?" Chazz gruffly asked.

Smirking, Axel responded with "My dragon in it's previous level, six, couldn't be affected at all by spell cards. In his new form, level eight, he allows me to choose which spell cards can be activated. That means I have total control of what spell cards are played. If I want one to activate, it happens, but if not, then they're negated."

"That means…" Alexis slowly began.

Finishing Alexis's sentence, Jaden said "Chazz is in trouble. He uses lots of spell cards which is bad."

Seeing Chazz growling in frustration, Axel smartly remarked "Now, shall we get on with it? I use Horus's effect to negate your spell card, so tough luck."

"Just go then." Chazz snapped out. (Axel 1400, Chazz 4300)


	55. Chapter 55: Flames of Anger, Pt 2

**Hey everyone! Well, yet another fun filled week, hehe. Monday, I visited my grandfather, who is doing well. He was eating rice pudding when I arrived, which shocked me really. Apparently, he's been given the go ahead to eat some stuff, like rice pudding, bananas (crushed up of course), mashed potatoes, and other liquid/soft food. He seemed rather alert and normal while there. Today, at work, we learned what our next set of projects are going to be, which was cool. We have till the end of June to finish up, and we begin more than likely in March or so. Also, next month, me and another guy will hopefully be going up to the home base and get to hang out with the programmers there. Finally, today (Wednesday), I'm headed up to see my grandfather once again and eat some dinner with my grandmother, Cindy, my mom, and possibly my sister and her boyfriend. Also, I'm off tomorrow, which is nice (I took off, hehe). Plus, I'm off for the next two days after today, plus the weekend, so five day weekend!**

**Writing wise, **_**Another**_** is going great. I did get a few minor ideas for the sequel to **_**FG**_**, but really, that's about it. Eh, I hate to say it, but things look shaky for a sequel currently, but I'm trying to work on it. We'll see.**

**Last time, the others left the shrine and encountered Axel, who moved Illidan and decided to fight Chazz. Now Chazz is in a desperate fight to beat Axel, but in his weakened condition, can he win? And what of the Slifer Shrine!?**

**Thank you everyone for your reviews last time. Heh, only 1 shy of 300 reviews, which is not too shabby. Thanks everyone for this. Alright, time for the reviews!**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Yeah, Axel is a pretty cool character from KH2. Np about answering your question on Anubis. Eh, if a card that strong came out, I'd be terrified for what it would do to the game, lol.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Good catch. You're right, I meant Premature Burial, but used Silent Doom oddly enough… But thank you for pointing out that error. I'm reloading the chapter to fix the mistake. Thanks once more.**

**pink-kiss-candy: LOL! (/Watches spiders fall from air onto Ryon and explode, leaving him a charred mess.\)**

**Isis the Sphinx: Lol, cute. True, I guess things are repeating themselves slightly, but to get all the Egyptian God Cards, they gotta fight the guardians, and so long as Zell tries to take the cards, there will be people waiting… (/Sniffle…\) You don't have to be so mean! Hehe…**

**Nathan: Ah, it's cool about being hesitant. I sometimes feel the same way about reviewing for the first time on a fan fic. Thanks for reading all of my stories. I'm glad you really liked this story. I try to update whenever I can, which is 3 times a week, since I try and finish my stories up before I start posting. Of course, sometimes I do post without finishing stories. Yeah, I know what you mean about Horus being bad is odd. I used it in the last story (I think…) on Illidan's side, but oh well. I'm glad you liked the interim duels between guardians. It does kind of build hype I suppose for the next guardian. Thank you once more for your review. I really enjoyed it, and hope to see more reviews from you in the future.**

**Knives91: Thanks. Glad you liked the chapter.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Yep, Axel was a student at the school. Glad you like seeing Axel in action. It's cool about not reviewing too much. It happens. Lol, Yami Marik, it's time to give up man. No way you can make a comeback now. True, the only thing he controls is the review, lol. (/Taps Yami Marik on the shoulder. Smiles a fanged smile and waves.\) Might want to run chief, because I have five little reason why you should. (/Crackles claws.\) Thanks for the review.**

**ardee: Lol, yes, another stunt. Heh, we all want to see Chazz and Axel, lol. Yeah, Horus vs. Armed Dragon would be nice… I know, I've been out of the game a while, and Kaiser Glider wouldn't do jack anymore, lol. Still, I didn't see much Skill Drain out before I left, so who knows. Ah, the good old favorites of mine, United We Stand and Mage Power… Those were the good days. At least we got to talk a little bit last night. Not much, but some, hehe. And yes, Marie does have plans to continue her stories, just when is the problem, lol. Thanks for the review!**

**Well, that's it everyone. I'll try and make sure to get a very special Turkey Day chapter up to celebrate not only the turkey (/Points at the remains of the one I ate.\) and my 300****th**** review. Thank you everyone once again for all of your reviews, comments, etc. I really do enjoy all of them. Till Thursday, enjoy!**

**Chapter 55**

Drawing, Axel remarked "Gladly! I start by playing the spell Pot of Greed, which means two new cards for me!"

Picking up two cards, Axel smirked once more and slapped a card to his Duel Disk, calling out "I summon Gaia Soul the Combustible Collective (2000/0)!"

A massive piece of flesh slowly rose up from the field. In the center of the flesh was a single eye that had a blue iris. Small flames of red energy seemed to be pouring off of the creature while it simply hovered in position.

"Next, I play the spell Quick Summon, which lets me summon this, my second Gaia Soul the Combustible Collective (2000/0)!"

Another piece of flesh with a single blue eye appeared on the field beside of the other.

"Gaia, attack that pathetic green creature with Flaming Eye Burst!"

Taking aim, the eye creature launched an attack that incinerated the weaker green monster. When the blast hit, shattering the poor green creature, the remainder of the blast went flying back straight at Chazz, smacking him hard in the chest and knocking him to one knee.

Panting hard, Chazz slowly stood. Smirking at his work, Axel smugly said "I guess you're curious about why you were hit also. Well, it's kind of simple. Gaia has the special ability to deal you damage even if your monster is in defense. In simple terms, I just did trample damage."

Slightly growling, Chazz slowed his breathing and defiantly replied "Whatever."

Smirking once more at Chazz, Axel called out "You maybe defiant now, but that won't last long. Attack his pathetic black creature now Horus with Darkness Flames!"

Roaring loudly, the dragon released a stream of black flames, which instantly engulfed the weaker black creature. The creature was quickly burned up, leaving no traces of it's existence.

"Time to bring you to your knees! I activate Gaia's effect! By sacrificing a Pyro type monster, I can increase it's attack points by 1000. My second Gaia, I sacrifice the first Gaia and Horus to you, so make me proud (2000 + 1000 2 4000/0)!"

Both the silver dragon and the one piece of flesh vanished, but as they did, the remaining piece of flesh bulged with power. It began glowing with an evil dark red color, seemingly growing in power.

"Gaia, attack his remaining Ojama with Flaming Eye Burst!"

Rushing forward, the eye burst into flames and struck the remaining yellow creature, which cried out "I'm sorry boss!" After the initial hit, the creature continued forward and struck Chazz hard, knocking him backwards into the air and into the barrier. Smashing up against it, Chazz cried out in pain. A few moments later, he finally fell off of the barrier and landed on the ground with a deafening thud.

"CHAZZ!" Jaden called out, hoping to get some kind of reaction.

Seeing none, he rushed up to the barrier and called out again, but still, there was no response from the young man.

Laughing at Chazz, Axel smugly said "You are finished. Just admit it, you were wrong."

"No… way…" came a raspy voice.

With great difficulty, Chazz began to stand up once more. He was struggling to stand, but finally made it to his feet. Panting heavily, he glared at Axel.

"Still a little fight left in you huh? Well, not for much longer. I activate the spell card Level Modulation. I'm doing you favor by playing this, so take advantage. First, you get to draw two cards from your deck."

Slowly, Chazz picked up two cards and added them to his left hand. Once he had, he fell back down to one knee, panting just as heavily as before. Nodding, Axel smirked, saying "Next, I get a LV monster from my Graveyard, so I pick my Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV8 (3000/1800)!"

Rising up once more in a sphere of black flames, the silver metal dragon roared, causing the flames to disperse.

"I end my turn, which causes my Gaia Soul to go to the Graveyard, but that's the price you pay for using an unstable monster."

The single lump of flesh began twitching and suddenly exploded, leaving nothing of the creature.

"Your go, if you have a go that is." (Axel 1400, Chazz 300)

"Come on Chazz, stand up and show him what you've got!" Jaden called out, trying hard to encourage his friend.

Staring at Chazz's panting form, Illidan pondered what was going to happen. "_He's exhausted. I don't think he'll make it. Those last shots really wore him down, not to mention he already had an intense duel against Chaos Sorcerer. Don't give up hope Chazz. I know you can hang on._"

Chuckling at Chazz, Axel smugly asked "Is that the extent of your strength Chazz?"

Seeing no change, Axel smirked even more, saying "You're pathetic. I knew you didn't have what it took to hack it against me. You're a failure Chazz. Always have been, and always will be!"

Looking up, Chazz glared at Axel through his bangs. With great difficulty, he began standing up. Finally on his feet, Chazz gradually slowed his breathing till it was finally under control.

"What do you fight for Axel?" he asked, shocking the group with the question.

Somewhat shocked by the question, Axel regained his composure and replied "For regaining my memories. They belong to me, and I will have them back once I beat you!"

Seeing Chazz's reaction of a light chuckle, Axel growled and yelled "What's so funny!?"

Looking dead serious at Axel, Chazz remarked "You." Shaking his head, he added "You just don't get it. When you fight for something, it shouldn't be for yourself."

Sneering at the comment, Axel replied "You're one to talk. I've watched you duel throughout this year, and each time, it's been for your own selfish pride! Don't lecture me now on what I should or shouldn't fight for!"

"You still don't get it. I'm not fighting for my selfish pride anymore."

Raising an eyebrow to this, Axel smartly asked "Then what do you fight for? To prove I'm wrong? For what do you fight for then!?"

"I fight for a friend, for a person that was taken. She taught me a valuable lesson, and I won't ever forget it." Chazz confidently replied.

Showing all of his confidence in his eyes, Chazz continued with "She showed me that winning isn't everything, that if you fight for something, then you must have a true reason. It must be a reason that is true and noble. That's why I fight now alongside of Professor Illidan! I fight to help save the one he has lost, the one person who broke through to me. And that's the reason why I'll take you down!"

Bursting out loud laughing, Axel defiantly pointed at Chazz, saying "You can't defeat me. I don't care what reason you fight for, it isn't strong enough to beat me. You're too weak to."

Drawing his next card on his deck, Chazz confidently called out "We'll see about that!"

Looking at the card, he smirked, saying "Your time is up. I'm about to finish you off, once and for all."

"How so? You have no monsters, barely any cards in your hand, and next to nothing on the field!? Just admit defeat." Axel bragged.

Smirking, Chazz shook his head, saying "Not happening. It's time I show you what I've had hidden for so long."

Realizing Chazz was talking about the card he had had face down since the start the duel, Axel asked "What could you have possibly hidden this long? Nothing I'm sure."

"Don't count on it!" Chazz quickly replied. Pointing at his face down card, he called out "I reveal my trap, Return from a Different Dimension! I pay half my life points in order to special summon as many as possible monsters from my removed from play pile. Since I only have three currently, that means all three return, so come back X-Head Cannon (1800/1500), Y-Dragon Head (1500/1600), and Z-Metal Tank (1500/1300)!"

In the sky, a multicolored rift opened up, and slowly, one by one, three machine creatures came pouring out from it. The first was the blue and yellow robot that hovered on a sphere device. Next was the red machine dragon. The last was the blue and yellow tank like creature.

Sneering at the three creatures, Axel smugly commented "Your creatures are weak. You can't beat me with those three."

"I agree, they're too weak to beat your monster, but I have something that will beat you."

The sky suddenly began to darken with ominously dark clouds. Lightning flashed down from them at the field, making Axel glance around. Realization finally struck him, as his eyes went wide with shock.

"But you can't play it!" Axel screamed.

"Wanna bet! I sacrifice all three of my monsters in order to summon The Winged Dragon of Ra (?/?)!" Chazz yelled while he slapped the Egyptian God Card to his Duel Disk.

Lightning began to form on Chazz's Duel Disk. From the bolts came a tremendous beam of light which flew into the air. Descending from the sky at a slow rate was a massive golden sphere emitting golden rays of light.

Seeing this, Chazz gaped at it, and asked aloud "Now what!? Where is Ra!?"

The three monsters spirits of the Ojamas formed around him, with the yellow one saying "Boss, you have to recite the chant to get it to come out."

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME!?" Chazz yelled.

"No, we're not boss. You have to recite the chant to make Ra come under your command." the little yellow creature answered.

Growling, Chazz muttered "Just great. I don't remember jack about it."

"We know it boss." the yellow creature piped up.

Looking at the three with an uneasy look, Chazz asked "What happens if I get the chant wrong?"

"Ra won't fall under your command, and it will stay a sphere. Also, that guy will have a chance to try the chant." replied the small black creature.

Turning thoughtful for a moment, Chazz finally asked "Do you three know the full chant?"

"Why certainly boss." the green creature responded.

Sighing, Chazz turned his eyes up to the golden orb above the field, and said "You three had better, because if you don't, we're finished."

"We do. Trust us boss." the three said in unison.

"I do." Chazz simply answered.

Clearing his throat, the green creature began, saying "Great beast of the sky, please hear my cry. Transform thyself from orb of light and bring me victory in this fight."

Repeating what the creature said, Chazz waited momentarily before the black creature continued where the green left off, saying "Envelop the desert with your glow and cast your rage upon my foe. Unlock your powers from deep within so that together we may win."

Once more repeating the words he heard, Chazz finally heard the yellow creature say "Appear in this Shadow Game as I call your name, Winged Dragon of Ra!"

With his last declaration made, Chazz watched in amazement when the large golden sphere began to transform. Bit by bit, the sphere transformed into a large golden dragon. Once fully transformed into the terrifying form of a golden metal dragon, it released a terrible roar, making the whole ground shake.

"It's not possible!" Axel screamed in shock.

Smirking at this, Chazz replied "Oh, but it is. By the way, Ra's points are determined by the monsters I sacrificed for it. The total of my monsters attack points is a whooping 4800 (1800 + 1500 + 1500 4800/1500 + 1600 + 1300 4400)!"

Roaring even louder, the dragon began to glow with a bright golden aura. Glaring at the silver dragon, the golden dragon roared loudly once more, seemingly causing the silver dragon to begin to shake with fear.

"Ra, finish this duel with your Blaze Cannon!"

Once more roaring loudly, the dragon formed a large sphere of golden energy within an archway on it's back between it's wings. Slowly, the energy began to seep down into the dragon's mouth through a set of two wires. Opening it's jaws, the golden energy could be seen within the dragon's throat. With a rapid blast, the dragon sent a stream of golden energy streaking towards the weaker silver dragon.

"NO WAY! IT CAN'T BE POSSIBLE!" Axel screamed while watching his dragon being approached by the blast.

There was little talking after that for the blast tore through the silver dragon easily, leaving nothing but smoking debris. Once the dragon was no more, the remainder of the blast struck Axel, throwing him up against the black barrier. His blood curdling scream made Alexis cover her ears, and even Jaden turned away. Illidan watched on, seeing the last of the young man that challenged Chazz.

After a few minutes, the blast subsided, allowing Axel to fall to the ground with a sickening thud. His life points drained away to zero, ending the game and causing both Duel Disks to power down. The massive Egyptian God soon vanished, but not before giving Chazz a look that said well done.

Walking over to check on Axel, Illidan sighed and shook his head. Turning back to the others, he walked up to Chazz and asked "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Chazz defiantly replied.

Nodding, Illidan responded with "We need to rest up for Jaden's duel then. I suggest we go get something to eat and relax a bit. Do you need some help in getting back Chazz?"

"I told you already, I'm fine." Chazz gruffly said.

Taking a step forward, Chazz immediately fell to the ground face first. Laying there, he mumbled "Maybe I could use a little help…"

Once saying this, he passed out from exhaustion, making Illidan lightly sigh. "Hard head, I knew you were drained." he chided before scooping Chazz up and throwing him over his shoulder.

"Guys, let's head back. I'll put Chazz down at my house and then we can grab something to eat and rest up." Illidan said to the others.

Both Jaden and Alexis nodded and the pack left for the dorms.

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Arriving back at Illidan's home, the group split up to freshen up while Illidan put Chazz down in one of the spare rooms.

Coming back downstairs, Illidan began a small dinner for the four. Cooking up some rice and chicken, he set the table in preparation for the others to return.

Nearly thirty minutes passed before Jaden came back into the kitchen. He smiled at Illidan, saying "That smells delicious!"

"Thanks Jaden." Illidan said with a sad smile.

Seeing this, Jaden asked "What's wrong?"

"I was thinking about Marie again."

Giving an apologetic smile, Jaden placed a hand on Illidan's shoulder, saying "We'll save her. Once we get my Egyptian God Card tonight, we'll be sure to save Marie!"

"Perhaps. Are you ready for tonight?"

Nodding in reply, Jaden smiled, saying "Yep. I'm ready to kick some guardian butt and reclaim that Egyptian God Card!"

Lightly chuckling at that, Illidan patted Jaden on the back, saying "Good to hear."

Turning serious, Illidan added "Do be careful. This guardian isn't one to play around with."

"Alright, I will."

Smiling, Illidan nodded and turned back to fixing dinner, saying "It should be ready soon. I hope you guys like stir fry the quick way."

"As long as it tastes better than what Marie used to fix, it's all good." Jaden replied with a big goofy grin.

Laughing, Illidan quickly responded with "Yeah, it is."

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"Another has failed us. Zell, you told me these fools would not, yet you were wrong again! Tell me, how I can expect the power of the Egyptian God Cards to revive the Sacred Beasts when you can't even capture one of the Egyptian God Cards!" roared Legato.

Cowering in spirit form, Zell fell to his hands and knees, saying "_Please Master, forgive me! I thought that they were strong enough. The power we have given them should have…_"

"I WANT RESULTS, NOT EXCUSES!" Legato roared once more, this time sending a bolt of Shadow Magic through Zell's spirit form.

Crying out in pain, Zell pulled into a fetal position. Through his screams of pain, he cried out "_Please Master, give the last one a chance!_"

Stopping his tormenting of Zell, Legato glared at the crumpled up spirit form. "One last chance. In the mean time, I shall find one I know for certain shall destroy Illidan should this person fail."

Slowly moving into a bowing position, Zell weakly replied "_Yes Master._"

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Opening his violet eyes, a young man with mostly black spiked hair with blonde bangs and pink on the edges of the spikes glanced up from his boat at the sky. Staring at the dark clouds as they slowly moved in, he sighed.

"So, the darkness is growing. I hope I'm not too late." he said aloud.

Turning his sight towards the direction he was headed, he lightly smiled. "I should reach the island in two nights. I just hope I'm not too late."

Frowning, the young man then smiled, saying "No, I know you can make it till then my friends. Just please, don't let the evil win. I know you can beat it."

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After nearly two hours of relaxing and eating, the group of Illidan, Alexis, and Jaden met in Illidan's living room.

"Should we get Chazz up?" Alexis asked.

Shaking his head, Illidan replied "No, let him sleep. He needs the rest. After an intense set of duels like he had, he needs to take it easy."

"Alright, we'll leave him to rest then." Jaden said with a small smile.

Nodding, Illidan said "Let's move out then. The sooner we get this over with, the sooner we can get back and rest up."

"Right!" Jaden and Alexis said in unison.

Heading out, Illidan locked the door and led the group off in the direction of the shrines, hoping to help Jaden claim the third Egyptian God Card.

"_We just got to get that card tonight. Once we have it, tomorrow will be all left up to me to finish. Marie, please, hang on a few more days. I will come for you!_"


	56. Chapter 56: The Cunning Guardian, Pt 1

**Hello everyone, and Happy Thanksgiving! Today is not too bad for me. Me and my mate only have one set of relatives to visit, which is my dad and step mom, so that's pretty good. Last night, we saw my mom, grandmother, grandfather (at the hospital still…), sister, and her boyfriend. We had a nice get together. I'll get to see them again Friday, although my mate can't go. Poor thing, she had to work today and tomorrow, which truly sucks.**

**Story wise, since I've been home, I haven't done too much writing on anything. Lol, I write like crazy at work, but home, I kind of relax I suppose. I do plan on writing some though, and seeing if I can get some ideas for the sequel for this story. I'm hoping to, plus to name it… We'll see I suppose, lol.**

**Last time, Chazz defeated Axel with the help of The Winged Dragon of Ra, and the help of his Ojamas who knew the chant. Afterwards, Chazz passed out, but the group keeps moving on. Legato was seen being furious with Zell, meaning that partnership maybe a bit more rocky than it first seemed, plus Legato seems to have someone in mind for stopping whoever goes after Anubis… Now it's Jaden's turn to battle it out with the guardian for Slifer. Will Jaden make it through this test, or will this be the Slifer Slackers final duel?**

**Alright, time once again for the best part! Review Time!!!**

**Nathan: Thank you, I'm glad you liked the end of the duel. I had thought of doing point-to-point, but eh, I figured it was more entertaining with the Ojamas helping Chazz unlock Ra instead. So true, stuff like that doesn't happen on the show normally. Lol, yeah, no one in their right mind would probably sacrifice Horus LV8 for something else or to power up a monster. It's just insane, lol. You're right about the Horus not being a Pyro type. That was my mistake, which I didn't realize it. I'd say it's more of a lapse of memory for me, lol. LOL! Yes, he needs a submit button for his mini-fic.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Yep, next up is Jaden for Slifer the Sky Dragon. Nah, we're not having anyone over for Thanksgiving. Who'd want to stay with half demons? Lol, but really, we're going to my dad and step mom's today instead, which is cool. Happy Thanksgiving to you too!**

**Isis the Sphinx: Do you know for a fact that that's Yugi? It could be some other kid with strange hair… Thanks for the comments.**

**Knives91: Thanks, and yes, nothing like a good scream to make the chapter more enjoyable, lol.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Puppy… (/Eyes begin to turn red, with fangs lengthening and claws growing out, and hair floating in the air.\) (/Slashes Yami Marik's spiky hair down to a flat top hair cut and shreds his cape.\) Wanna call me a puppy again… (/Calms down thanks to sword at hip.\) Be happy I didn't sick my mate on you. She'd love to clean her claws on you, hehe. Ah yes, back to the review. It's cool about sharing the spotlight. It looks like a nice duel so far. Thanks about the chapter. I liked the Ojamas helping out with the chant too. It made them seem more useful than before, lol. Yes, two Egyptian God Cards down, two to go. Thanks for the review once more.**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Is it Yugi though? You never know, could be some other strange person with spiky hair… Yeah, you can use Anubis, but I do ask that you credit me as the one who made the card. Just mention it once or something at the top, or whatever. And thank you for asking first. Some people just take and don't ask. I like to ask others myself to borrow the names or whatever. Thanks once more.**

**ardee: Lol, nice hacking. Yes, Ra had to make some kind of appearance, lol. But yeah, the Ojamas helping out was cool. True, Ra wasn't that strong, but it's all the man had to work with, lol. Good job on being the 300****th**** reviewer. Thanks for the review.**

**Alright, that's it for today. Now I must be off, for I have many things to do before my mate gets home. At any rate, take care all and have a Happy Thanksgiving. I'll be back tomorrow once more, if I wake up from eating all that food, lol. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 56**

Slowly trekking through the forest, Illidan led the group of Jaden and Alexis towards the shrines once more. The group was somewhat quiet, which was different for once.

Breaking the silence, Jaden asked "So, will Chazz be alright?"

Lightly smiling, Illidan glanced over his shoulder and replied "Yes, he'll be fine. He just needs some rest. I'm surprised he didn't pass out during his duel with Axel really."

"Chazz is too hard headed to do that." Alexis smartly responded.

Chuckling, Jaden added "Yeah, he'd rather let the Ojamas torture him for life than pass out in the middle of a duel."

"That would be nice to see." Alexis slyly remarked.

Lightly chuckling at the two's comments, Illidan glanced up, but decided to ask a question after thinking for a moment.

"Jaden, I was wondering about your Neo-Spacians. You said you won them at Pegasus's tournament during the summer, right?"

"Sure did, and it was a sweet set of duels to win them." Jaden responded happily.

Lightly frowning, Illidan asked "Did the cards ever react to you?"

Smiling, Jaden nodded, saying "Yeah, when I first touched them, it seemed like I was transported to a place in space. There, I saw all the monsters I had just received. It was pretty freaky, but also pretty cool. They talked with me and explained that they had been summoned to Earth in order to help save it from a great impending darkness."

Sighing, he added "At the time, I didn't understand what they were talking about, but now I get it. The darkness they spoke of was Legato."

"It's alright Jaden." Illidan consoled. "None of us knew that Legato would cause trouble. We can't fix the past, but the future is still fixable. So, let's keep going."

Smiling, Jaden nodded and said "Right."

Softly smiling, Illidan glanced ahead and saw they had arrived at the shrines once more. "We're here."

Walking up to the area where the last shrine was, Illidan held out his hand, sending out a small bit of Shadow Magic. Momentarily later, the shroud cloaking the shrine lowered and the barrier, along with the shrine, became visible. Holding his hand still out, Illidan willed the barrier away, releasing the shrine from it's protection.

Nodding to Jaden, he said "Go ahead Jaden, open it up."

"Right." Jaden simply responded.

Making his way to the shrine, Jaden pulled his Shadow Pendant over his head and held out it towards the shrine. Like the other shrines, the door glowed lightly and opened.

Taking the lead, Illidan began walking down the dark corridor. Behind him, Jaden and Alexis followed silently. The torches along the walls each sparked to life as the group continued moving deeper and deeper into the shrine.

Finally arriving at the large room, the room lit up, revealing a figure in the far corner fencing with a chunk of stone. Hearing the sound of footsteps, the figure stopped fencing and glanced at the three that had just entered his room.

Studying the three, the figure approached slowly. The closer he got, the better the view of the figure became. The group discovered that the figure approaching had black ebony shiny armor with a mixture of gold trim, as well as a few blotches of red, mostly around his helmet. In his right hand was a powerful bronze colored sword, and in his left was a strong shield with black and gold coloring. On his shoulders were two golden backward sweeping spikes. His face had a light shade of green. The helmet that protected his head had three flowing spikes pointing behind him, and coming out from under it in the back was a braid of brown hair.

Staring at the three, the figure asked aloud "Who disturbs this shrine?"

Smiling, Illidan stepped forward, saying "I disturb it."

Eyeing Illidan, the figure took a moment to finally ask "Master Illidan? Is it really you?"

Nodding, Illidan simply replied "Yes, it is my old friend."

Sheathing his sword and slinging his shield onto his back, the figure stepped forward and hugged Illidan, saying "It is so good to see you Master!"

Hugging back, Illidan pulled back and said "It is good to see you too my friend. I see you're still training."

"Yes, I've been preparing myself for the last ten years, just in case I was ever needed to defend the card. Speaking of which, why are you here? You told me that you could not enter the shrine on your own, ever."

"Very true, I told you that." Illidan responded. "I didn't come alone. I came with help, and we've come for the card you hold."

Stepping back, the figure said "I see. Who has come for it?"

Motioning for the others to come closer, Illidan said "I'll get to that in a moment."

Once the two got closer, Illidan calmly said "Guys, I'd like to introduce you to the guardian of the Egyptian God Card, Slifer the Sky Dragon. This is Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning."

"Oh wow! I thought he looked familiar! This is so totally sweet!" Jaden exclaimed.

Chuckling at the boy, the soldier turned serious once more, asking "Master, who has come to fight with me?"

"That would be me!" Jaden interrupted.

Eyeing Jaden, the soldier lightly smirked, asking "You are my opponent? Interesting."

"Jaden is your opponent. Don't take him lightly." Illidan admonished.

"We'll see." the soldier commented.

Speaking in a serious tone, the soldier asked "You do realize what is at stake if you challenge me for my card?"

Nodding, Jaden responded "I do, and I'm willing to take that risk. I challenge you for ownership of the Egyptian God Card, Slifer the Sky Dragon!"

"Very well, I accept. The rules are simple. Lose and you lose all of your Shadow Charms, along with your soul. Win though, and you shall be rewarded with the Egyptian God Card I guard."

Smiling, Jaden replied "Sounds good. Let's get started!"

Lightly chuckling at Jaden's enthusiasm, the soldier nodded, saying "Very well."

Moving into position, the soldier held out his arm, causing a strange glow to appear. Slowly, the glow lowered till a strange black Duel Disk formed. It didn't have a long tray either way for cards, but suddenly, it glowed and shot out two long blade sections, making room for cards. A deck then appeared in the soldier's right hand, which he quickly shuffled and jammed into the deck holder in the Duel Disk.

Smiling, Jaden pulled out his own deck and lowly said to his deck up close "Alright guys, let's go out there and win this one for Marie."

Appearing on Jaden's shoulder, the small brown creature with wings let out a small cheerful call, making Jaden smile. "We'll win this one Kuriboh."

Seeing the small creature, the soldier lightly smiled. "_He has a Duel Spirit. Interesting…_"

Getting serious, Jaden placed his deck into his Duel Disk, which instantly powered up. Bringing his left arm out, Jaden fully powered up the Duel Disk, causing the slot on it to shoot out.

"Get your game on!" Jaden called out, signifying the start of the duel.

Each drew their first five cards, and the soldier smiled, saying "I shall start this duel."

"Feel free to." Jaden kindly replied.

Nodding, the soldier drew a sixth card and said "I summon this, my Red Gadget (1300/1500)!"

A red machine creature with a large silver gear on it's back, gears on it's wrists, and large flat feet materialized onto the field.

"Thanks to Red Gadget's effect, when it's summoned, I get to add my Yellow Gadget from my deck to my hand."

Picking up his deck, the soldier sorted through till finally he found the card. Placing it in his left hand, the soldier then shuffled his deck and placed it back in the deck slot.

"To end, I shall lay two face down cards. Your move." (BLS-EOTB 8000, Jaden 8000)

Nodding, Jaden drew his card and smiled, saying "This is going to be a sweet duel, I can already tell! To kick things off on my end, I summon Elemental Hero Bubbleman (800/1200)!"

In a spray of bubbles, a man in a blue costume outfit with a long white cape, light blue boots, gloves, shoulder pads, and a helmet that covered all but his mouth. On his right wrist was a small gun attached that looked like the end of a water hose, and on his back was a set of water tanks.

"Since Bubbleman is all alone on my field, his effect kicks in, allowing me to draw two new cards."

Picking up two cards, Jaden examined them before grinning once more. "I play the spell Polymerization, which lets me fuse Bubbleman with Elemental Heroes Avian (1000/1000) and Sparkman (1600/1400) to create Elemental Hero Tempest (2800/2800)!"

With a small whirlwind, a green human like creature with white wings, a clawed left hand, a feather like armor appeared. On his head, he wore a crown of feathers that covered all but his mouth and cheeks. Beside of the green creature appeared a small electrical storm, from which came a blue human like creature with some gold armor. The man in blue wore a helmet that covered his entire head, but showed no signs of eye holes. On his back were two wing like structures that were mostly blue.

Once the two had appeared onto the field, the man in light blue leapt up to join the two and the three together began to swirl. A bright light filled the area, blinding everyone. The light finally began to dim and revealed a new figure where three once stood. The new figure had green hair, a blue visor that covered his face except for his mouth and cheeks, a pair of metallic wings on his back, and his right hand was replaced by some sort of blaster. His body was covered in blue metallic armor, with traces of some gold in places. The new figure let out a small battle cry and landed softly onto the field.

"Tempest, introduce yourself to Red Gadget with Glider Strike!"

Taking aim, the green haired warrior pointed his gun at the weaker machine creature. Blue energy began to gather around the tip of the blaster, signifying it was powering up. Placing his left hand on the blaster to steady it, the warrior released a shot of blue energy at the red machine creature.

Before the blast could make it halfway across the field, the soldier called out "I think we'll skip this introduction. I activate my trap, Threatening Roar! With this, you cannot declare an attack, which means the attack you just launched is cancelled out!"

A set of shockwaves, emanating from the trap card, struck the oncoming blast, instantly scattering the energy. The energy was soon dissipated, leaving the battle zone clear.

Slightly smirking at this, Jaden called out "That was pretty cool. I'll throw down two face downs and call it a turn." (BLS-EOTB 8000, Jaden 8000)

"Not bad mortal. I must admit, you summoned a rather strong monster, but it pales in comparison to what lives within my desk." the soldier boasted.

Nodding, Jaden replied "Maybe so, but that doesn't mean I'll lose."

Preparing to draw his card, the soldier responded "We'll see."

Taking his hand off of the card, the soldier smirked, saying "Before I actually draw, I activate my other trap card, Ultimate Offering. By paying 500 life points, I'm allowed to have an extra normal summon. Now then, I offer up 500 of my life points in order to summon this, my Yellow Gadget (1200/1200)!"

With a small glimmer, a yellow machine creature with a gear that was split in half down it's back appeared onto the field. From it's stomach to it's mid-back was a gear that appeared to be solid through and through.

"When I summon Yellow Gadget, it's effect goes off, allowing me to add Green Gadget from my deck to my hand. Now then, I pay another 500 life points and summon Green Gadget (1400/600)!"

Appearing onto the field was a green machine creature with a gear as the creature's mid-section. On each shoulder was a gear as well, seemingly holding it's arms to it's body.

Smiling at his field, the soldier drew his card, saying "Since I have the monsters I need now, I may proceed."

"You'll need more than those Gadget creatures to bring down Tempest." Jaden stated.

Smirking, the soldier lowly whispered "If only you knew what was coming."

Realizing what was about to happen, Illidan gritted his teeth. "_He has it! This is bad! Jaden, hang on. This will truly be your ultimate test._"

Seeing the three monsters, Jaden silently pondered what the soldier was up to. "_None of those three monsters can beat Tempest, so why summon them? It's like he had to have all three… Wait, the number three! Of course, he needs three monsters to summon his Egyptian God Card!_"

Noticing that Jaden's eyes had widened, the soldier chuckled, asking "You've figured it out, haven't you?"

Slowly nodding, Jaden replied "Yeah, I know now what you have planned."

"Then allow me to show you what I must do!" the soldier cried out. Pulling a card from his hand, he called out boldly "I sacrifice all three of my monsters in order to summon the almighty Egyptian God, Slifer the Sky Dragon (?/?)!"

All three monsters vanished in a quick flash. The room seemed to suddenly dim somewhat as clouds appeared above the field. Slowly, lowering from the clouds was a long red serpent like body with many spikes and a black underbelly. A set of sharp clawed feet appeared on the body, and finally the head of the creature dipped down from the clouds. On it's back were massive red wings, which gave a small beat. The head of the creature was extremely powerful. It had two sets of jaws, glowing yellow eyes, and a blue gem in the middle of it's forehead. With a massive roar, the entire shrine shook.

Staring wide eyed at the mighty dragon, Jaden murmured "So that's Slifer…"

"Indeed it is." the soldier stated. "Allow me to explain how his points are determined. For each card I hold in my hand, Slifer gains 1000 points. Since I hold three cards at the moment, that means Slifer has a total of 3000 points (3000/3000)!"

With a mighty roar, the dragon lifted it's head up, showing it's power. Glaring down at the field, the dragon let out another roar, trying to impose fear.

"Now, I play the spell Pot of Greed, allowing me to draw two new cards. Since I just drew two, Slifer gains more points (3000 – 1000 + 2000 4000/4000)!"

Again roaring with the increase of power, the dragon glared at the green haired warrior, seemingly stating what was to happen soon.

"Slifer the Sky Dragon, attack Elemental Hero Tempest with your Thunder Force!"

Letting out a mighty roar, the dragon opened it's jaws wide. Golden energy began to form within the dragon's bottom jaw, making the green haired warrior slightly apprehensive about his position. With little warning, the dragon released a stream of the golden energy straight at the green haired warrior, who crossed his arms in front of himself, hoping to block the blast.

Seeing the oncoming attack, Jaden called out "Tempest maybe in harms way, but he's going nowhere! I activate his special ability, which lets me send a card from my field to my Graveyard in order to let him survive a battle. I'll send my Insurance trap card to my Graveyard, so Tempest is safe!"

"You still take the damage though!" the soldier admonished.

The blast struck the green haired warrior, who held his ground, but the remainder of the blast bypassed him and struck Jaden, making him scream out in pain. Once the blast ended, Jaden stood with smoke rolling off of his body, but he looked up with a smile.

Smirking at Jaden's demeanor, the soldier said "I place one card face down, which ends my turn (4000 – 1000 3000/3000)." (BLS-EOTB 7000, Jaden 6800)

Drawing his card, Jaden smiled, saying "I think it's time for a change of scenery, so I play the field spell Skyscraper!"

Holding his Duel Disk up, he lightly tapped the slot on the end of it. A new slot shot out with room for only one card. Placing his card into it, the slot closed and the field began to glow. Without warning, the field turned to asphalt and buildings began firing out of the ground. Soon, the field was covered with buildings with bright lights, and a large moon in the sky.

Looking around, the soldier asked "What is this?"

Smiling at the soldier's confusion, Jaden replied "It's my Skyscraper field spell. In here, my Elemental Heroes gain 1000 extra attack points when they're weaker than their opponents. Now then, let's try a rematch between Tempest and Slifer, shall we? Tempest, show Slifer your Glider Strike (2800 + 1000 3800/2800)!"

Rising into the air, the green haired warrior locked onto his target and fired a stream of blue energy at the mighty red dragon.

Seeing it coming, the soldier cried out "Slifer, counterattack with Thunder Force!"

Roaring in response, the red dragon released a stream of golden energy, which met the blue blast in the middle of the field, sending out shockwaves from the force of the two powers. The blasts grinded on one another for a moment before the blue energy began to push the golden energy backwards.

"So long Slifer, it was fun knowing you!" Jaden smartly remarked.

Smirking at the remark, the soldier responded with "Slifer is not leaving yet, for I activate the trap card Jar of Greed! With this, I can draw one card into my hand."

Picking up a card, the soldier smirked again, saying "Since I just drew a card, Slifer's power increases once more (3000 + 1000 4000/4000)!"

"That means…" Jaden muttered.

"Slifer is strongest now! Finish off that creature now Slifer!" commanded the soldier.

Roaring with acknowledgement, the dragon released a larger amount of energy into it's stream. The blast increased in size, stopping the blue energy in it's tracks. Instantly, the flow began to reverse, with the blue energy hurriedly being pushed back towards the green haired warrior.

Just as the blast was about to hit, Jaden called out "Tempest isn't going anywhere though, for I send my other face down, the spell called Spell Calling, to my Graveyard!"

The blast soon hit after Jaden made his statement, making the green haired warrior cry out in some pain, but he managed to survive the blast. A bit of the blast made it past him, striking Jaden, causing him to cringe in pain.

Soon after the blast, Jaden regained his composure and said "I'll throw down a face down to end my turn." (BLS-EOTB 7000, Jaden 6600)

"He was so close…" Alexis murmured.

Nodding in agreement, Illidan replied "Yeah, he was, but Black Luster Soldier is tougher than he looks. He's always thinking at least three steps ahead of his opponents."

"Is he that smart?" Alexis asked with worry.

"He's always been a good strategist. Of the Duel Spirits that I was close to, he was by far the most cunning."

Worry began to cloud Alexis's mind even more. "Does Jaden stand a chance?" she asked half-heartedly, hoping not to get the answer she was worried she would.

Taking a moment to ponder her question, Illidan finally responded "I believe so. Jaden may not be a strategist, but he is strong. I have no doubt in Jaden's abilities. He just needs to play the game the way he always does."

A bit of worry seemed to leave Alexis, but still, she looked on with worried eyes. "Please Jaden, you've got to make it." she whispered.

Back on the field, the soldier drew his next card, saying "Since I just drew, Slifer's points rise (4000 + 1000 5000/5000). Now then, Slifer, attack Tempest with your Thunder Force! Show him no mercy!"

Roaring loudly, the dragon released a golden stream of energy straight at the green haired warrior. Seeing the blast coming, the warrior crossed his arms in front of his body, hoping to survive the blast.

"I'll use Tempest's effect again, so I send the spell Bubble Illusion to my Graveyard." Jaden called out just when the blast struck the green haired warrior.

Like always, the warrior managed to weather the blast, but at the same time, the remainder of the blast escaped him and struck Jaden, making Jaden fall to one knee panting.

Smirking at this, the soldier chided Jaden, saying "You should know by now this strategy of yours won't work. Just look at you, you're tiring."

In a quick motion, Jaden was back up and smiling. With a light chuckle, Jaden replied "I maybe taking hits, but I'm having the time of my life. This duel is so sweet!"

"_Even after being hit a few times by Slifer, this boy still is excited about this duel. I've not seen such enthusiasm from anyone since Master Illidan fought me._"

Sighing, the soldier slightly chuckled, saying "I see. Well then, I place a card face down, and set a monster (5000 – 2000 3000/3000). That shall do it for me." (BLS-EOTB 7000, Jaden 5400)

While drawing his card, Jaden smiled. Looking at it, Jaden examined the soldier's field. "_He weakened Slifer again. Last time he did that, he thought he had me pinned down, but was prepared just in case. Should I let this opportunity slip by and not attack?_"

Shaking his head, Jaden made up his mind. "First, I place a card face down. Now, let's try this one more time! Tempest, show Slifer how strong you are with Glider Strike!"

Letting out a battle cry, the green haired warrior fired a stream of blue energy from his blaster gun. The red dragon only glared at the blast, seemingly challenging it to hit him.

"I knew you'd do that, hence why I play this! The trap Acid Trap Hole! Thanks to this card, I can flip one face down monster face up. If it has defense points less than 2000, then that card is destroyed, but if it's higher, it's set again. But that don't matter, because the flip effect goes off by flipping the card. So, I choose my monster, which is none other than Morphing Jar (700/600)!"

Appearing on the field was a grey jar that seemed to have something within it. A sphere like creature with a wide grin that had yellow teeth and a single eyeball with a red iris slowly slid out of the pot.

"Since I flipped my monster, it's effect now goes off. Once flipped, we must discard our entire hands, and then we each draw five cards."

Simultaneously, Jaden and the soldier placed their hands into their Graveyard Slots, sending each of their cards on their way. Once again at the same time, the two picked up five cards, each glancing at their hands.

Smirking, the soldier called out "By the way, since my monster has less than 2000 defense points, it goes to my Graveyard due to Acid Trap Hole's effect."

Vanishing into a hole, the sphere creature let out a small scream and then a shattering was heard, signifying the end of the creature.

"Since I now have five cards in my hand, that means Slifer gets stronger once again (5000/5000)! Slifer, show his Tempest your Thunder Force!"

Opening it's massive jaws, the mighty red dragon released a burst of golden energy that easily overtook the blue burst of energy.

Seeing the oncoming blast, Jaden called out "I send my face down trap, Feather Storm, to the Grave for Tempest's effect!"

Glowing lightly, the green haired warrior crossed his arms in preparation for the oncoming blast. The golden blast soon struck the warrior, who managed to deflect a majority of the attack, but not all of it. The part that got past him struck Jaden hard, knocking him to one knee once again.

Panting lightly, Jaden struggled to his feet and said "I'll throw down a face down and summon Neo Spacian Glow Moss (300/900) in defense."

A small light blue glow formed on the field. From the glow came a creature with a light blue glow that had a circular head and slender body. Taking a knee, the creature crossed it's arms into a defensive stance.

Lightly chuckling, the soldier said "That was a foolish move. Thanks to doing that, you've triggered Slifer's special ability!"

"What special ability?" Jaden asked with worry visibly in his voice.

Sneering, the soldier replied "When you summon a monster, Slifer automatically strikes a monster with a blast of energy from it's second set of jaws that has a base of 2000 points. Pending on your monster's mode, the blast will drain 2000 points from the mode. If the monster has less than 2000 points in that mode, then the monster is destroyed. Now then, since you summoned your creature in defense, Slifer will blast it for 2000 defense points. Since it only has 900, your creature will be gone!"

When opening it's top set of jaws, smoke began to come out of the dragon's mouth. A sphere of purple energy soon formed in the dragon's open set of jaws. With minimum effort, the dragon launched the blast at the small light blue creature. The sphere struck it quickly, making the creature cry out in pain. It soon shattered, leaving Jaden alone again with the green haired warrior.

Growling with frustration, Jaden lowered his head and mumbled "That's all I have." (BLS-EOTB 7000, Jaden 4200)


	57. Chapter 57: The Cunning Guardian, Pt 2

**Hey there everyone! Well, me and my mate survived Thanksgiving Day, although, it was a very interesting day. When she got off from work, we headed out to my dad and step mom's house, where there, I found a very grumpy dad. I knew immediately he was mad about something, and I joked with my step mom he needed a nap, lol. Well, I came to find out, that wasn't the half of it, hehe. Apparently, they had an argument about her family coming (I won't go into details). Plus, my step brother's girlfriend was there, which didn't matter to me, lol. Anyways, I talked with dad later, and found out what a good bit of the problem was. It wasn't the family thing for the most part, but more of someone didn't know when to shut up that morning. He'd been talking non-stop since he got up, plus didn't wash his car very well with the help of his girlfriend. Anyways, dad was irritated by it, which I can relate. My step brother has pushed me to that point before, but I think dad could have handled it better. Oh well, that's just how family goes sometimes, lol.**

**Story wise, eh, not much new other than I've partnered up with ardee to do the final sequel. We'll see how things go from here, but I can't make any promises, one way or another, lol. As for **_**Another**_**, I'm thinking about posting it's first chapter in maybe a week or so. I want to write up 25 or so chapters first, and I'm past halfway, so I may begin posting next week or the one after, pending on how far I get. So, for any Inuyasha fans, or just curious people, it's coming out soon.**

**Last time, Jaden began battle with Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning, who rather quickly summoned Slifer the Sky Dragon. Now Jaden is holding on desperately (maybe not so desperately, lol) with the use of Elemental Hero Tempest, but how long can Tempest hold out?**

**Time for that most wonderful time again! Review Time!**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: (/Sighs\) Damn Marik. Maybe I should release the always lovable mate who likes to maul things… Eh, I'll save her for later, hehe. Nice little scene there. Thanks about the chapter. Yes, I had BLS be much more courteous than the other two. I mean, one was a dragon who liked to scare people and the other was a sorcerer who liked to throw spheres of magic at you. Of course you get a nice courteous soldier, lol. Very true, Jaden needs to get some good fusions out to beat Slifer, but how…**

**x-knight20: Thanks. That's cool about it being a while. No rush, lol. Yeah, BLS is a great card. I used to use him a good bit back in the day before the bans, and even after for a while. I actually got him and DMoC the same day long ago. That was one of the best draws I ever had from looking for cards.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Thanks, and lol at Ryon. (/Sky yells back: "Die!" Thousands of little clay birds rain down onto Ryon, who puts up a small umbrella and waves good bye.\)**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Yes, Jaden is clinging to Tempest for dear life for now. Hopefully they'll be some contact fusions, but with Slifer out, doubtful at the moment.**

**Alright, that's it for now. Thank you everyone for your reviews. At this rate, we may yet beat **_**TWS**_** amount of reviews, but if not, then everyone gave it a good try. Thank you everyone once more, for your reviews are rather helpful and inspiring to keep at it. Now, I must be off. I have to ready myself to go see my grandfather. Enjoy everyone, and I'll be back Monday!**

**Chapter 57**

Picking up a card, the soldier smirked once more, saying "Slifer's points increase once more for this new card (5000 + 1000 6000/6000)! Attack his pathetic Tempest now Slifer with Thunder Force!"

Roaring in response to it's master, the mighty red dragon opened it's bottom set of jaws and released a mighty stream of golden energy.

Knowing he had no choice, Jaden called out "I send my face down, my trap Hero Medal, to my Graveyard! Of course, it has an effect, which makes it a sweet card. Instead of going to my Graveyard, it goes back to my deck, and once it is back, I get to draw a new card."

Shuffling the card into his deck quickly, Jaden drew a new card and defiantly glared at the oncoming attack. The blast struck the green haired warrior, and like always, he managed to stop most of the blast, but not all of it. The remainder of the blast continued on past, striking Jaden hard this time. Falling to his knees, Jaden leaned forward onto his hands, panting hard.

"JADEN!" Alexis gasped.

"_He can't keep going on like this. If Jaden has any plans on winning, he needs to make a move._" Illidan mentally thought.

Smirking at his handiwork, the soldier calmly said "Mortal, surrender why you still can. This duel will end soon enough, one way or another. I offer you an easy way out now, so take it."

Panting hard still, Jaden didn't answer. After a few minutes, he finally slowed his breathing and began to stand up once again. Hiding his eyes with his bangs, Jaden struggled to stand. Finally standing, his breathing continued to slow till finally it was no longer ragged.

"I can't give up." Jaden spoke slowly.

Sneering at this, the soldier mockingly stated "There is no shame in giving up."

Looking up with conviction in his eyes, Jaden emotionally said "I can't give up! I swore to myself I wouldn't! My friends, my family, and the world, they're all depending on me to win, so I cannot and will not give up! I vowed to save Syrus, Hasselberry, Professor Marie, and everyone else that Zell threatens, and I will keep that vow!"

Drawing a new card, Jaden examined it and smirked. "I play the spell Fusion Sage, which lets me transfer a Polymerization from my deck to my hand. Next, I play Polymerization, allowing me to fuse the Elemental Hero Burstinatrix (1200/800) and Elemental Hero Clayman (800/2000) together to form the Elemental Hero Rampart Blaster (2000/2500) in defense!"

A female creature with pale white skin in a red body suit that covered most of her body except part of her arms appeared. She had red gloves that came up to her elbows, but the fingers of the gloves were cut off revealing her skin instead. She had long black hair that fanned out with a bit of white at the ends. On her head was a golden flared out helmet, and her face was partially covered with a red mask that didn't cover her cheeks or mouth. Beside of her, a large grey creature with gold feet and some on his shoulders, with a red dome head and black stripe surrounding his neck appeared. The creature had large legs and arms, seemingly meant for defense.

The two then swirled together, vanishing completely. From the swirling came a new figure in grey with golden feet and some on it's shoulders and it's domed helmet. In the creatures left hand was a red plate like shield, and it's right arm consisted of a large blaster looking gun instead of a hand. The creature was easily seen that it was female by it's chest and face underneath of it's helmet. For the most part, the creature's body was covered in dull grey armor. Once fully on the field, the monster took a one knee position and placed it's shield protectively in front of it's body.

Shaking his head, the soldier smirked, saying "You are rather foolish. Did you learn nothing from your last turn? Slifer will only weaken your monster!"

Raising it's head, the dragon roared loudly and released a purple sphere from it's top set of jaws at the new creature. The sphere struck the shield of the creature, which struggled to hold it up. A large explosion soon ensued, causing a large cloud of smoke to appear. Slowly, the smoke cleared, revealing the grey armored warrior still stood, but barely. Her shield was broken, her body covered in scorch marks, and part of her helmet was cracked open, revealing her eyes.

"I'm sorry Rampart (2000/2500 – 2000 500)…" Jaden whispered.

Turning back to the soldier, Jaden growled out "You'll pay for that right now! I activate Rampart's special ability! By cutting her attack points in half 2000 / 2 1000/500), I can direct attack you, so get some revenge now with Rampart Barrage!"

Nodding, the female warrior took aim with her right arm. Several missiles soon came firing out of the gun, each streaking by the large red dragon and striking the soldier, who lightly cried out in pain.

Flashing a smile, Jaden picked the last card out of his hand and said "I'll throw down a face down, and switch Tempest to defense. I think that's enough for now." (BLS-EOTB 6000, Jaden 2000)

"Nice move Jaden!" Alexis called out.

Smiling, Jaden nodded back. Seeing this, Illidan smiled. "_He's not done yet. I know you can do this Jaden. Just hang on a bit longer._"

Picking up a card, the soldier smirked, saying "You're still in this duel, eh? Well then, I suppose I'll just have to turn up the heat! Slifer (6000 + 1000 7000/7000), eliminate that Rampart Blaster with Thunder Force!"

Roaring loudly, the red dragon reared it's head back and began to build energy within it's mouth. Lowering it back down, the dragon released it's stream of golden energy at the grey armored female warrior.

Smirking, Jaden raised his hand to his face down card, saying "I don't think so! I play my trap, Hero Halo! Thanks to this card, I can equip it to Rampart Blaster. Since it's equipped, Rampart Blaster can't be attacked by monsters with 1900 attack points or more!"

The blast immediately dispersed when it struck the grey armored warrior. The female warrior lightly smirked at this and glared up at the red dragon.

Infuriated, the soldier mumbled "I place a card face down (6000/6000) and end my turn." (BLS-EOTB 6000, Jaden 2000)

Drawing, Jaden smiled great big, but before he could say anything, the soldier called out "I activate the trap card Final Attack Orders! With this, all monsters are forced into attack mode, so no more hiding your monsters!"

Both the grey armored woman and the green haired warrior stood up, each taking up offensive stances.

"The end is coming mortal. Prepare yourself for it."

Lightly chuckling, Jaden responded with "Nah, it's all good. I'm not licked yet. Especially since I'm about to take down your Egyptian God Card."

Laughing, the soldier sarcastically asked "And how do you propose to do that? Slifer has 6000 attack points. Compared to your warriors, he's twice as strong."

"Exactly." Jaden shot back. Showing a card he had in his hand, he added "That's why I'm playing the spell Battle by 2! With this, I can choose a monster on my field that's twice or weaker than your Egyptian God Card. If it is, then I can double that monster's attack points for this turn, so I choose Tempest (2800 2 5600/2800). And don't forget about my Skyscraper field spell, which grants him an additional 1000 points (5600 + 1000 6600/2800)."

Sweat formed on the soldier's forehead when he watched the green haired warrior begin to be surrounded by a powerful aura. "No…" he mouthed.

"Oh yes! Tempest, show Slifer the way to the Graveyard! Glider Strike!"

Leaping into the air, the green haired warrior took aim and released a stream of blue energy from his blaster arm. The blast quickly traveled the length of the dueling field and struck the mighty red dragon hard in the chest, making it roar loudly in pain. Without warning, the dragon suddenly began tumbling down from the air and struck the ground hard, sending out many shockwaves. The soldier only looked on in shock, completely surprised by the results of the battle.

"JADEN DID IT!" Alexis squealed with excitement.

Smiling, Illidan added "Nice work Jaden."

Staring at the disarrayed soldier, Jaden rubbed his index finger under his nose, saying "Wow, I actually did it! Sweetness!"

Seeing the soldier still speechless, Jaden added "I'm not done by the way. Rampart Blaster, reintroduce yourself with Rampart Barrage!"

Bringing her right arm up to firing range, the grey armored female warrior let out a small battle cry and released a barrage of rockets at the stunned soldier. Each rocket scored a hit, shocking the soldier back into reality.

"To end, I'll throw down a face down, and that's it for me." (BLS-EOTB 3400, Jaden 2000)

Drawing a card, the soldier surprised Jaden with a smile, kindly saying "Well done descendant of Stormrage."

"Wait, you know that I'm Illidan's descendant!?" Jaden asked in a bit of shock.

Nodding, the soldier simply replied "Yes, I've known for quite a while. I saw it before this duel even began. When I first saw you, I knew it then that you were his true descendant. I felt it immediately."

Curious, Alexis asked Illidan "What is he talking about?"

"It's… complicated. I'll explain later." Illidan assured Alexis.

Frowning, she nodded. "You better, because this is confusing."

Lightly chuckling, Illidan replied "Indeed."

Back on the field, the soldier kindly said "You know, I always wondered if the blood line of Illidan and Marie would survive to present day. Now I know it has."

Turning serious, he added "I won't surrender though. Even though you are the true descendant of my Master, I must fight due to my duty. So then, I shall continue."

"I play the spell Pot of Avarice. With this, I can send five monsters from my Graveyard to my deck, shuffle, then draw two new cards. The five monsters I pick are my three Gadget creatures, Morphing Jar, and Cyber Jar."

One by one, the monster cards slid out of the soldier's Graveyard Slot and into his awaiting hand. Picking all five up, he placed them within his deck and shuffled. Once finished, he drew two new cards and slightly smirked at them.

"It is time I took back control of this duel. I send two cards to my Graveyard in order to special summon this, the monster that shall help me defeat you! Rise up my mighty Candela, the Beast of Light (0/0)!"

Materializing onto the field was an orange creature with two large clawed forearms, a massive tail, twin heads with a light blue light coming from their foreheads, and a large circular like beam of light blue light in it's chest.

"A level twelve monster? But how!?" Jaden asked nervously.

Chuckling at this, the soldier replied "Simple really. Candela can only be special summoned by sending two cards to my Graveyard from my hand."

Examining the creature further, Jaden chuckled, saying "Ok, but your monster has zero attack points."

"Correct, but that's why he has a special effect."

Frowning, Jaden muttered "I was afraid he was going to say that."

Holding his cards up, the soldier said "For each card I hold in my hand, Candela gains 1000 attack points. Since I have five at the moment, that means Candela has 5000 attack points (5000/0)."

Softly growling with frustration, Jaden muttered "It's a weaker version of Slifer…"

Smirking, the soldier replied "Yes, it is. Unfortunately, the turn that Candela is summoned, I can't attack, so for now, I place a card face down, and end my turn (5000 – 1000 4000/0)." (BLS-EOTB 3400, Jaden 2000)

Drawing a new card, Jaden smiled at it, saying "I play the spell Hero Dice!"

On the field, a pink die with arms, thrusters, and a small head with a mask appeared.

"Thanks to this spell, I get to roll a die. Pending on the result of the die is what happens. If it is one, I inflict damage to my life points equal to one of my Elemental Heroes. Two lets me destroy a spell card on my field, with three letting me destroy a monster on my field. Four lets me destroy one of your monsters. Five destroys a spell on your field, and finally six lets an Elemental Hero direct attack you. So, let's see what happens!"

Flying into the air with help from it's thrusters, the die pulled it's arms and head inside and began to fall towards the ground. Hitting the ground, it began to roll like crazy. Finally, it began to slow and landed at last on a six.

"Sweetness! I get to direct attack you with one of my monsters, so I choose Tempest! Attack him with Glider Strike!"

Aiming his blaster, the green haired warrior fired a shot of blue energy at the soldier, who raised his arms to protect himself. The blast hit hard, knocking the soldier to one knee. Slowly, he stood back up and growled in anger.

"I think that's enough punishment for now." (BLS-EOTB 600, Jaden 2000)

"Jaden has almost got this duel won!" Alexis exclaimed happily.

Not saying anything, Illidan only stared on. Seeing this, Alexis asked "What's wrong?"

"It's too early to celebrate. I think Jaden's fight has only begun." Illidan commented.

On the field, the soldier prepared to draw his card, but stopped. "Unfortunately, due to Candela's effect, I can no longer draw cards on my turn, but that's alright. Now then, I activate the trap Reckless Greed, allowing me to draw two new cards, but I must skip two of my next Draw Phases, but that is fine since I can't use them anyways. Since I just added two cards to my hand, that means Candela gets stronger (4000 + 2000 6000/0)!"

Roaring loudly, the orange creature's light blue lights glowed brighter, showing it's power had increased once more.

"Candela, let's finish this! Attack his pathetic Tempest with Light's Destruction!"

Letting out another roar, the twin headed creature released a powerful set of twin pink beams of light at the green haired warrior.

Eyes widening, Alexis exclaimed "Jaden can't survive that blast!"

"Jaden…" Illidan mumbled.

Pointing to his face down card, Jaden called out "I activate the spell Emergency Provisions. Thanks to this, I can sacrifice a spell or trap card and gain a 1000 life points, so I'll send Hero Halo to my Grave. Next, I sacrifice Rampart Blaster to Tempest for his special ability, so Tempest will survive this fight!"

With the two cards vanishing from the field, the green haired warrior crossed his arms and took on the pink blast, but part of the blast was deflected towards Jaden, who cried out in pain and fell to his knees, panting hard. He then fell forward onto the gorund, letting out a small moan of pain.

"Very well boy, I play the spell Smashing Ground (6000 – 1000 5000/0). Thanks to this spell, I can destroy the monster with the strongest defensive points, which happens to be Tempest!"

A large human fist came out of the ceiling and struck the green haired warrior with great impact, instantly smashing the warrior into nothing.

"To end, I play the spell Mystical Space Typhoon (5000 – 1000 4000/0), destroying your Skyscraper!"

Without warning, a large twister formed on the field and struck all of the buildings on the field. With incredible winds, the twister destroyed each and every building till nothing was left on the field except Jaden laying on the ground.

"Let's see what you can do now boy." (BLS-EOTB 600, Jaden 800)

Seeing Jaden wasn't getting up, Alexis called out "Jaden, get up."

Jaden appeared to not hear her, ignored her, or just couldn't respond. Knowing this, Illidan mentally contacted Jaden with his Shadow Powers.

"_Jaden…_" he whispered.

After a moment of silence, Jaden slowly stood up on the field with great difficulty. Staring at the soldier, he calmed his breathing and said "I'm not finished with this duel yet. After all, a duel isn't over till the last card is played, and I still have one more card to play!"

Drawing his next card, Jaden smiled, saying "I play the spell Hope of Fifth! This card is pretty sweet because I can take five Elemental Heroes from my Graveyard and shuffle them back into my deck. Since I have no cards in play and no other cards in my hand, I can then draw three cards. The five monsters I'll send back are Elemental Heroes Burstinatrix, Clayman, Sparkman, Bubbleman, and Avian."

Slowly, one by one, the five monster cards slid out of Jaden's Graveyard Slot. Picking the cards up, Jaden shuffled them back into his deck and drew three cards when he finished.

Grinning at his new cards, Jaden called out "I play Pot of Greed, so two more cards for me!"

Picking up two cards, Jaden called out "Next, I activate the spell Fake Hero, allowing me to special summon this, my newest Elemental Hero, Elemental Hero Neos (2500/2000)!"

A flash of light appeared in the sky and suddenly a powerful white warrior with a slicked back horn on his head and spikes coming out from his elbow joints appeared. He had a bit of red lining on his body, along with a bit of blue as well. On his chest was a blue circle.

"Of course, Neos can't attack this turn, and he goes back to my hand when this turn is over, but it's all good because I have another plan for him. I summon Neo-Spacian Dark Panther (1000/500)!"

Leaping onto the field was a black panther with a flowing black cape on his back.

"Now, how about some fusion action! With Neo-Spacians, I don't need a Polymerization card, but I do have to send both the monsters I merge back to my deck. I merge Neo-Spacian Dark Panther and Elemental Hero Neos together to create Elemental Hero Dark Neos (2500/2000)!"

Both the panther and the white warrior launched themselves into the air. Hovering over top of the white warrior, the panther slowly lowered into the warrior. A bright blinding light then filled the room to reveal a new warrior. This warrior had black wings, with black skin with a few blotches of white on his chest and legs. The creatures also had clawed hands now, along with clawed feet.

Chuckling, the soldier mockingly said "Your warrior is weak. He's no stronger than your other hero was. Besides, at the end of this turn, your creature shall vanish, leaving you weak."

"True, but strength isn't everything." Jaden slyly replied. "You see, Dark Neos has a special ability that makes him more than enough of an opponent for your dragon. I'm allowed to select one monster on the field and negate that monster's effects for this whole turn. Now Neos, negate Candela's special ability, meaning his attack points go back to zero!"

The soldier's eyes went wide with realization when he saw his monster glow darkly. Instantly, the creature's points changed (0/0).

"No, it can't be! Candela is defenseless!" the soldier cried out in shock.

Nodding, Jaden smiled, saying "Exactly, meaning Neos can finish things. Dark Neos, attack Candela with Dark Slash!"

Leaping into the air, the black warrior flew straight towards the weakened dragon. With a swipe of it's claws, the warrior beheaded the twin headed dragon, leaving nothing but two stumps behind. Smashing into the field simultaneously, the dragon's heads shattered, along with it's body.

With the shattering of the dragon's body, an explosion followed, knocking the soldier to one knee. His life points quickly drained away, leaving him with zero points. Once this happened, the cards and creatures on the field slowly vanished, and Jaden's Duel Disk powered down.

Smiling great big, Jaden pointed at the soldier with a small v-shaped hand motion, saying "And that's game!"

Chuckling, the soldier stood back up and walked over to Jaden, saying "Well fought. Even in the most adverse situation, you didn't give up. Impressive."

Lightly blushing from the compliment, Jaden smiled back, saying "Actually, I almost gave up, but someone reminded me that you should never give up, even when things look their worst."

"Yes, Master Illidan always has that way with people."

Suddenly, Jaden felt a pair of arms wrap around him and hug him, saying "You won Jaden!"

Blushing again, Jaden replied "Thanks Alexis."

Releasing him, she lightly blushed herself, but turned to Illidan and smiled. Smiling back at the group, Illidan patted Jaden on the shoulder, saying "Good job."

"Thanks. I couldn't have done it without your encouragement." Jaden remarked.

Shaking his head, Illidan responded with "You could have. I know it."

"Thanks again though." Jaden humbly said.

Grabbing Jaden's attention, the soldier pulled a card out of his deck and said "This is for you. You've earned it. You are now the guardian of the Egyptian God Card, Slifer the Sky Dragon."

Examining the card, Jaden smiled and took it, placing it within his own deck. "Thanks. I'll make sure to not lose this card."

Turning back to Illidan, the soldier said "I have completed my task Master. What now shall I do?"

Warmly smiling, Illidan placed hand on the soldier's shoulder, saying "Rejoin me in our struggle to save Marie and the world."

"Save Marie?" the soldier asked, unsure what Illidan meant.

Sadly smiling, Illidan told the soldier what had happened. Once he finished, the soldier knelt down in front of Illidan, saying "Master, I swear to you, we shall find her. I humbly ask to go with you."

Offering his hand to the soldier, who accepted it and stood, Illidan replied "I accept it. Welcome back old friend."

Holding a card out, Illidan smiled. The soldier merely nodded and turned into a small sphere of light. The sphere soon landed on the empty card and merged with it. Bit by bit, an image of the soldier appeared on the card till the sphere was fully reabsorbed, revealing the soldier completely.

Putting his arms behind his head, Jaden smiled, saying "Well, that's that."

"Yes. Now then, let's get out of here." Illidan said as he turned and led the way out of the shrine.


	58. Chapter 58: Heroes Battle Royal, Pt 1

**Hello again everyone! Well, this past weekend was an enjoyable weekend. Friday, I saw my grandfather, who went home from the hospital not long after I made it there, which was cool. I spent some time with my mom, sister, her boyfriend, my grandmother, and grandfather. I talked a bit with Steve (my sister's boyfriend), which was fun. He's a pretty cool guy. Anyways, after a while, I finally went home. Saturday, me and my mate went to Charleston to do some of our Christmas shopping. I got my step brother's gift, and my mate picked out my sister something, plus we have my step mom already taken care of. My mate managed to get almost all of her family done, all but one I think. Lol, she also took me into Victoria's Secrets to get something for us to enjoy (more like her to wear and me to enjoy looking at, hehe). Anyways, yesterday, we spent the day napping in the afternoon, and not much else really happened.**

**Hard to believe, I had five days off, and I barely got any writing done on **_**Another**_**, although I did make major headway on the sequel to **_**FG**_**. This is due to the co-writer on the sequel, now dubbed **_**Minutes to Midnight**_**, the wonderful ardee! Ardee did a wonderful job on outlining a plot and helping me and rl Marie decide on what to do with the final story of the Illidan and Marie series. The series will end with **_**MtM**_**, that much is assured, which I'm happy and sad. Really, it does a much better job at ending the series than **_**FG**_** would have. I am truly thankful for ardee's help on this joint effort, for I was somewhat lost on how to do it, lol. Anyways, the future is looking bright for **_**MtM**_**, so stay tuned to the future.**

**Last time, Jaden defeated BLS in battle at long last, earning him Slifer the Sky Dragon. Illidan then reclaimed BLS for his own deck. Now that three of the four Egyptian God Cards are returned, can the fourth be picked up, and what sinister plans do Zell and Legato have in store for the group?**

**Ok, time once more for that great part of the morning! Review Time!**

**Nathan: Thanks. Yeah, I think everyone was thrown for a loop that I'd use Candelato. Really, the card did fit perfectly in with a deck centered around Slifer like you said, seeing how both require cards in your hand to make it work. Perhaps Jaden will do well with Slifer… Heh, yeah, Metal Overlord's review/duel is pretty good. It's a very original deck, to say the least.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Uh, uh, someone… other than Yugi… with tri-colored hair… Maybe… Seto colored his hair! Yeah, that could be it! Lol, thanks for the review.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Thanks. I know, no one thought of BLS using Candelato as his backup weapon. Glad I haven't lost that surprise power yet. Nice duel so far btw. Thanks for the review!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Yep, one contact fusion, but there is more to come, I assure you. Yes, Thanksgiving was interesting to say the least. That sucks. Possibly it could be one of the duelists…**

**Knives91: Thank you, and yes, you guessed the guardian. Thanks for both reviews.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Illidan's working on saving her. LOL! It could always get worse Ryon, just trust me. Ouch, that would hurt to become a dead puppet for 72 hours. What kind of freak you ask? (/Points to huge guy in a black robe with clouds on it and a big hat over his head.\)**

**Thanks everyone for the reviews. I truly enjoyed them this week. It is always nice to see what everyone thinks of this story, and I'm truly happy that most think it's good. Good or bad criticism, I enjoy it. Anyone who has not reviewed but reads, don't feel shy. I enjoy hearing from new people as well as the old diehard fans. Anyways, I'm done for today. I hope you all enjoy this chapter. Thanks once more.**

**Chapter 58**

Upon exiting the shrine, the group was welcomed by the site of the full moon. Smiling up at it, Illidan led the group further from the shrines and then turned back. One by one, the three shrines completely appeared. Waving his hand through the air, the shrines vanished once more, leaving the area empty looking, like it always had.

Moving the group towards the way out of the forest, Illidan suddenly stopped when he saw a figure blocking the path. While the group moved closer, they saw that the person had sandy blonde spiky hair, piercing light blue eyes, and wore a Red Dorm uniform. On his arm was a Duel Disk, showing his intentions.

Knowing who the person was, Illidan held his hand up for Alexis and Jaden to stay back. Moving closer to the figure, Illidan curtly said "Roxas."

"Professor Stormrage." Roxas curtly replied.

"Why are you here?" Illidan asked calmly.

Smirking, Roxas wryly replied "To take that Egyptian God Card of Jaden's. My Master wishes to have it."

Lightly growling, Illidan moved into a defensive stance, defiantly saying "You'll have to go through me first!"

"Professor Illidan, don't."

Turning back to see it was Jaden who said that, Illidan snapped out "Jaden, stay out of this! He's trying to do to you like what the others had happen to them."

Placing a kind hand on Illidan's shoulder, Jaden smiled, saying "I know, but I'm not going to back down from him."

"Jaden…"

Chuckling, Roxas quirked "Is Professor Stormrage afraid to allow Jaden to fight his own battle?"

Lightly growling, Illidan threw a glare at Roxas, saying "Keep out of this!"

"Sorry, but I can't. If I wish to have my memories back, I must take Jaden's Egyptian God Card." Roxas gently said with a sad smile.

Calming down with a heavy sigh, Illidan slowly said "Zell is only using you as a tool to get what he wants. Do you honestly think he'll give you back your memories if you help him?"

"I do." Roxas confidently replied.

Shaking his head, Illidan flatly responded "Then you're more of a fool than I thought."

Smirking, Roxas smartly replied "We shall see. Now step aside, and let me and Jaden duel."

Moving out of Jaden's way, Illidan placed a hand on his shoulder, saying "Be careful. He seems more focused than the others."

"Right." Jaden simply responded.

Both Roxas and Jaden took up positions to face one another. Smirking, Roxas said "I've been looking forward to this rematch Jaden. You beat me last time, but only due to my weak fake of a deck."

"Fake deck?" Jaden asked with a confused expression.

"Yes, a fake deck. Now you will feel the true force of my real deck!" Roxas remarked smartly.

Smiling, Jaden happily said "I can't wait. Let's get this going then!"

Simultaneously activating their Duel Disks, the pair drew their first five cards, with each saying "Game on!"

"I'll go first." Jaden said as he drew his sixth card. Examining his hand, he picked up a card and slapped it horizontally to his Duel Disk, saying "I summon Elemental Hero Clayman (800/2000) in defense."

A large grey round like creature with gold feet and some on his shoulders, with a red dome head and black stripe surrounding his neck appeared. The creature had large legs and arms, seemingly meant for defense.

"That'll do it for me." (Jaden 8000, Roxas 8000)

Drawing a card, Roxas smirked, asking "You realize this is a Shadow Game, right?"

"Of course, since you three are pretty much all the same. Shadow Game or normal game, it's still a duel." Jaden responded.

"I see." Roxas confidently replied. Picking a different card from his hand, he calmly said "Jaden, your Elemental Heroes are interesting, but they're not real heroes."

"Uh, yeah they are. After all, they're called Elemental Heroes, thus making them heroes." Jaden countered.

Smirking, Roxas slyly said "Your creatures are pretenders, compared to my heroes. It's time I introduced the real deal to you. I'll show you that my heroes, the Destiny Heroes, are far superior to your weak Elemental Heroes! I play the spell D-Spirit, which activates when I have no monsters on my field with the name Destiny Hero in it. Now I can special summon a level four or lower Destiny Hero, so I pick Destiny Hero – Doom Lord (600/800)!"

A black armored figure with a tattered red cape, long clawed hands, a white head in which only his eyes were revealed, and a set of curved up shoulder spikes materialized onto the field.

"Wow, he looks rather interesting, although he isn't very strong." Jaden commented.

Smirking at this, Roxas confidently replied "He's much more than a pretty face. Now then, I activate the spell Reasoning. Here is how it works: you declare a monster level, then I pick up cards till I find a monster. If the monster I pick up is the same level as you declare, then that monster is discarded, but if it's not the same level, I get to special summon it. So pick a level!"

Not even pausing to think, Jaden called out "Level four!"

"Good, then here I go." Roxas calmly said while picking up his first card. Smirking, he showed it to Jaden, saying "I just drew a level five, which is this, my Destiny Hero – Double Dude (1000/1000)!"

Appearing onto the field, a man dressed in a black suit with white gloves, which one hand held a cane with a blue sphere at the top, with a purple scarf that covered his mouth and nose, wore glasses that hid his eyes, and a black hat.

"Now then, I play another spell card, my Quick Summon! This lets me normal summon another monster that's level four or lower, so I pick my Destiny Hero – Captain Tenacious (800/800)!"

With a mighty battle cry, a man with long orange hair, a black mask that covered half of his face, a bare chest that was well toned, with powerful arms that had some sort of set of shields strapped on, and strong legs in blue green armor appeared.

"Since I have all the monsters now that I needed, it's time I show you my true intentions. I sacrifice all three of my monsters in order to special summon one of my strongest Destiny Heroes, Destiny Hero Dogma (3400/2400)!"

Each of the three monsters on the field vanished in a flash of light, leaving the field empty. A flash of light then enveloped the field, which died down to reveal a large black creature with massive black wings. A pair of chains were wrapped around his neck, with white horns sticking out of it's head. The creature had olive skin with red eyes. On the monster's right arm was a large sharp looking object protruding from his wrist that looked like a sword.

Chuckling darkly, Roxas called out "Dogma, show Jaden who he is dealing with! Attack his pathetic Clayman with Crystal Justice Slash!"

Letting out a small grunt of acknowledgment, the creature leapt into the air and went sailing straight for the rock warrior. Coming down hard, the creature pieced the rock warrior's heavy defensive arm, shattering the rock creature easily.

"I shall place a card face down to end Jaden." (Jaden 8000, Roxas 8000)

Picking up a card, Jaden smiled, saying "Not a bad opening move."

"Thank you, but it's not over yet." Roxas wryly commented.

"Huh?"

Smirking, Roxas pointed at the winged creature saying "Dogma has another special ability that I forgot to mention. When summoned, he automatically halves your life points during your Standby Phase, which is now."

Before Jaden could react, the creature began to glow black suddenly. Without any warning, Jaden's body glowed black as well, making him scream out in pain while holding his sides. Finally, the glow died down, but Jaden dropped to one knee, panting heavily while sweat poured off his face.

"Hurts, don't it Jaden? Why not end the suffering and stay down?" Roxas taunted.

Slightly growling, Jaden rose up with some difficulty, saying "Never! A duel isn't over till the last card is played, and believe me, I have plenty of cards to play! To start with, I play this, the spell Double Fusion! Thanks to this, I pay 500 life points, but now I can have two fusion summons this turn, so I fuse Elemental Hero Avian (1000/1000) and Elemental Hero Burstinatrix (1200/800) to form Elemental Hero Flame Wingman (2100/1200)!"

Appearing onto the field was a green feathered warrior and a woman in a red jump suit. The two swirled together, forming a creature that had a red dragon head for a right arm, a mostly green and black body, with a long red tail, and a white wing on it's left shoulder. The creature's head was mostly black with some red, and it's eyes were red.

"As impressive as Flame Wingman is, there is another fusion even greater, so I fuse Elemental Hero Flame Wingman and Elemental Hero Sparkman (1600/1400) to form the one and only Elemental Hero Shinning Flare Wingman (2500/2100)!"

A blue and gold armored warrior with electricity flowing around his body appeared onto the field beside of the green combo warrior. Swirling together, a blinding beam of light formed on the field. From the light, a set of metal wings with razor sharp feathers appeared. As the light faded, more of the creature became apparent. Next was it's powerful white legs, then it's torso, followed by it's powerful white armored arms, and at long lest the creatures helmeted head. The only skin seen was on the creature's neck, which was a shade of green.

"Your so called impressive creature is too weak to fight Dogma." Roxas pointed out with a small chuckle.

Smiling, Jaden nodded in response, saying "True, but he has a sweet special effect. For each Elemental Hero chilling out in my Graveyard, he gains 300 attack points. Currently, I have five hanging out, so that means 1500 bonus attack points (2500 + 1500 4000/2100)!"

The white armored warrior bent his arms upward slightly while the light surrounding his body increased in brightness.

"Shining Flare Wingman, let's take down that Dogma! Hit him with Shining Nova Sphere!"

Flying into the air, the warrior put his hands together. Pulling them slowly apart, a sphere of green energy formed. Once the sphere was the size of a basketball, the warrior pulled the sphere back with his right hand and threw it at the black winged warrior across the field.

"Not quite." Roxas remarked with a smirk. Raising his hand to point at his face down card, he called out "I activate the trap D-Counter! Thanks to this, I can destroy your monster before it even touches Dogma, so take that!"

The shining white armored warrior suddenly slammed into an invisible barrier and began to scream out in pain. Seconds later, the warrior shattered, leaving nothing behind.

Softly growling in frustration, Jaden picked a card from his hand and said "I'll throw down a face down, and that's it." (Jaden 3500, Roxas 8000)

"I thought Jaden had him for sure." Alexis commented dejectedly.

"Don't give up on him yet Alexis. Jaden is still very much alive in this duel. He needs our support more than ever." Illidan replied.

Nodding, Alexis sighed and said "True. I just hope he can hold on."

Drawing a card, Roxas slightly smirked, saying "You are a fool Jaden to think you can beat me."

"Really, well, we'll see!" Jaden responded with confidence.

Lightly chuckling, Roxas said "Yes, we shall. Now then, first of all, in my Standby Phase, Double Dude's effect kicks in. Since he went to my Graveyard, his effect allows me to special summon two Double Dude Tokens (1000/1000), so come on out boys."

Two men dressed in black suits with hats appeared onto the field, each holding a cane.

"Dogma, let's end this! Attack Jaden directly with…"

Holding out his hand, Jaden called out "Not so fast, I have a trap! It's time I revealed my A Hero Emerges! Normally, when I activate this trap, you'd have to randomly pick a card from my hand and if it was a monster, I get to special summon it, but since I only hold one card, let's just get right down to business."

Flipping the card around to reveal it was a monster, Jaden slapped the card horizontally to his Duel Disk, saying "I special summon Elemental Hero Necroshade (1600/1800) in defense."

A red and white colored warrior with silver on it's chest appeared in a crouching defensive stance. He had clawed hands, along with a face covered completely in a mask with red eyes.

"No matter, I'll just annihilate that pathetic creature! Destroy it Dogma!"

Continuing to rush forward, the dark winged warrior swung it's crystal sword through the red and white creature, instantly shattering it upon contact.

"Double Dude Tokens, show him what you got with a direct attack!"

Both men in black suits leapt forward, each smacking Jaden hard with their canes. The first struck him in the chest, while the other struck him in the gut, making Jaden double over and wrap his arms around his sore chest and gut.

"I'll end with a face down. Better prepare for the end Jaden, because it's coming." (Jaden 1500, Roxas 8000)

Still with his arms wrapped around his stomach and chest, Jaden fell to one knee, panting hard. Sweat was pouring off his face while he sat there, trying hard to regain his breath.

"Jaden, hang in there! We know you can do it!" Alexis encouraged.

Watching Jaden pant heavily, realization hit Illidan. "_He's exhausted. That duel between him and guardian took so much energy out of him. I don't know if he can keep this kind of pace up. If it was a slower pace duel, he might make it, but with Roxas playing such fast action, it's impossible._"

A minute or two went by, and still, Jaden stayed down on his knee with labored breathing. He tried to stand once, but miserably fell back down to one knee.

"Just admit it Jaden, you're finished! Surrender now and I'll let you have an honorable death." Roxas confidently remarked.

Jaden visually grimaced at the comments, but still didn't move. His breathing was still labored, but it was slowing a little.

"Are you going to take that you Slacker!?" a voice called out from the direction of the dorms.

Looking in the direction, the group saw Chazz struggling to walk towards them. Jaden's eyes widen with recognition, asking "Chazz?"

"Nobody is going to defeat that Slifer Slacker other than The Chazz, got that!?" Chazz confidently stated.

Chuckling darkly, Roxas pointed a finger at Chazz, saying "Your pride blinds you to the fact that you're not even in Jaden's league. Once my Master finishes with Illidan, you and that sweet Alexis will be next."

"You're not going to hurt either of them!" Jaden cried out as he stood up once more.

Turning to Chazz, he smiled, saying "Thanks for that Chazz."

"Heh, anytime." Chazz remarked.

Moving his attention to Roxas, Jaden smiled, saying "I'm not done with this duel yet."

"You're kidding me? Look at you, you're a mess. You won't last much longer, not to mention, you have nothing!" Roxas stated.

Smiling, Jaden replied "Maybe so, but a duel isn't over till the last card is played, and last time I checked, it was my turn, so here goes something!"

Picking up a new card, Jaden examined it and exclaimed "Sweetness! I summon Elemental Hero Bubbleman (800/1200) in defense mode."

In a spray of bubbles, a man in a blue costume outfit with a long white cape, light blue boots, gloves, shoulder pads, and a helmet that covered all but his mouth. On his right wrist was a small gun attached that looked like the end of a water hose, and on his back was a set of water tanks.

"Since Bubbleman is the last card in my hand, his special ability allows him to be a special summon. Plus, since I have nothing on my field, Bubbleman's other effect allows me to draw two new cards."

Grabbing two cards, Jaden examined them and smiled once more, saying "It's time I kick this duel up a notch! I play the spell Metamorphosis, which allows me to sacrifice a monster on my field in order to summon a Fusion Monster with the same stars, so farewell Bubbleman and hello Elemental Hero Neo Bubbleman (800/1200)!"

The blue warrior on the field slowly began to morph into a newer form. His armor took on small fins, and his cape became a large white fin. His helmet changed as well, adding a set of fins onto the side of it.

"Next, I play the equip spell Bubble Blaster and hook it up to Bubbleman, raising his attack points by 800 (800 + 800 1600/1200)!"

A large missile launcher appeared in the sky above the blue warrior, who held out his right arm and caught it. Taking a right knee position, the warrior brought the blaster into firing position.

"Neo Bubbleman, show that Double Dude Token we're not finished with Bubble Barrage!"

Taking aim, the blue warrior launched a blast of water at one of the men in black suits. The blast slammed into the creature, which easily shattered on contact. The remainder of the blast continued on past, striking Roxas, making him slightly grunt in pain.

"That's it for me, so bring it on!" (Jaden 1500, Roxas 7400)

"Not bad Slacker, not bad." Chazz commented with a smirk.

Slightly growling, Roxas drew his next card, saying "Alright, you had your fun, now it's time I ended this game of charades! Dogma, obliterate that pathetic hero with Crystal Justice Slash!"

Rushing forward with full force, the black winged warrior pulled back his sharp crystal sword. While the black winged warrior approached, the blue warrior released a burst of water from his rocket launcher like weapon. The blast struck the black winged warrior, which let out a howl of pain and exploded into millions of pieces. Once the creature was gone, the rocket launcher weapon shattered and vanished off of the blue warrior's shoulder, who stood up straight once more.

"WHAT!?" Roxas exclaimed.

Chuckling at this, Jaden explained, saying "I forgot to mention something about Neo's special ability. When he battles with a monster, at the end of the Damage Step, he destroys the monster he fights with, hence Dogma is gone."

Growling loudly, Roxas pointed an angry finger at Jaden, yelling "Then why didn't you lose the duel! Dogma had more than enough attack points to destroy you, and the Battle Damage would have been 1800 points, more than enough to wipe you out!"

"True, but there is something else you didn't know. Remember the Bubble Blaster? Well, it has an effect also. When Bubbleman would be destroyed in battle, it is destroyed instead, and all Battle Damage is reduced to zero. So sorry, but no dice on me disappearing just yet." Jaden said with a light chuckle.

The vein in Roxas's forehead began popping out. In pure anger, he screamed "Double Dude Token, destroy Bubbleman!"

Moving forward at a quick pace, the man in the black suit pulled his cane up and struck the blue warrior, but not before the blue warrior let loose a shot of bubbles at the man. The two simultaneously exploded, leaving the field nearly empty.

Grinding his teeth in anger, Roxas growled out "I guess since my Double Dude Token fought Neo Bubbleman, they were both destroyed, right?"

Nodding, Jaden simply replied "Yep."

Picking a card from his hand, Roxas muttered "I play Destiny Hero – Defender (100/2700) in defense."

A large grey brick like monster appeared onto the field in a kneeling position with his arms up as shields. On the creature's head, there was a small golden grate that revealed only a pair of red eyes.

"I end." (Jaden 1300, Roxas 7400)

Drawing his new card, Jaden noticed that the grey brick monster began to lightly glow. Seeing this, he asked "Does your Defender have some kind of special ability?"

"Unfortunately, yes. He allows you to draw an additional card so long as he's in face up defense mode." Roxas grudgingly responded.

"Sweetness!" Jaden replied with a smile while he picked up another card.

Glancing at his hand, he picked a card and said "I play the spell E – Emergency Call, which lets me add an Elemental Hero from my deck to my hand, so pick Elemental Hero Neos. Next, I activate the special ability of my Elemental Hero Necroshade. While he's in the Graveyard, I summon a monster that has Elemental Hero in it's name without a sacrifice, so I pick Elemental Hero Neos (2500/2100)!"

A streak of light flashed in the sky and slowly, a white warrior with a mask over his face, with some red and blue on his body, and a blue circle on the center of his chest, appeared onto the field.

"Next, I activate the spell card H – Heated Heart! Thanks to this card, it raises Neos's attack points by 500 for this turn (2500 + 500 3000/2100), plus it gives him Trample! Neos, introduce yourself to Defender with Cosmic Crush!"

Leaping into the air, the white warrior came down with his fist forward, striking the weaker grey brick creature hard, shattering it to pieces. Part of the debris struck Roxas, making him lightly growl.

"Your go." (Jaden 1300, Roxas 7100)


	59. Chapter 59: Heroes Battle Royal, Pt 2

**Hey there everyone! ****So, this week hasn't started out that great. Monday night, more like early Tuesday morning, me and my mate got a call from her sister, saying her mom was in the hospital. She went to visit yesterday since she was off, and found out her mom had a small heart attack. Her sister made it out not to be a big deal, while her aunt blew it out of proportion… Anyways, she saw her and her mom told her that she wasn't that bad off. She could possibly get out today or later this week pending tests that were being run. My poor mate, she can't get off work either thanks to her wonderful boss (my former one when I worked there at one point in my life). The dumbass said they're short handed, but refuses to hire more people… (/Sighs\) She's a bright one… So, at any rate, my mate is worried about her sister having a pancreas attack due to the stress. Eh, life so sucks sometimes…**

**On the flipside of life, my grandfather was doing well last time. He was rather awake and alert, and my grandmother told me that he ate a whole bowl of chicken noodle soup and a thing of rice pudding, and was hungry still, lol. She gave me some more pudding to feed him, but he told me I could have it, which was nice. I had a bite and offered it back, but he said he was good. Oh well, anyways, he has been doing rather well, plus my grandmother is getting some help in taking care of him, which is rather good. She'll have someone there 5 days a week for 3 hours a day to help out and watch help watch him if she needs to go out, rest, or do something, which is a big help for her. I unfortunately can't be there all the time, nor my mother or sister, so at least she does has someone to help now.**

**Story wise, I've wrote a bit on **_**Another**_**, and thought a bit on **_**Minutes to Midnight**_**. I must say, I'm getting excited about both. As for the release of either, I'm still unsure.**

**I must apologize for last time everyone. I made a large mistake in the beginning of the story, and have had to reload the chapter. I had Roxas play his field spell, Mausoleum of the Emperor, thinking I could use it to special summon monsters. When I reread the card Monday, I realized how wrong I was, and thus changed a line or two in the story. The only problem with this is I left the field spell in play still… I apologize, and have reloaded the chapter. Nothing else changed other than I took out a line or two for the card.**

**Last time, Jaden and Roxas's duel got underway, with Roxas taking a commanding lead thanks to Destiny Hero – Dogma. Jaden though managed to make a come back and now has Neos out clearing the way. Still, Roxas seems confident that he'll win. Can Jaden put Roxas down, or will Roxas get his memories back, along with Jaden's soul and Egyptian God Card?**

**Time once more for the best part of the day! Review Time!**

**Nathan: Lol, of course it had to be the Destiny Heroes. Thanks on the first move. I thought that would be a nice opening really. I saw that structure deck this past weekend (Rise of the Dragon Lord). I didn't buy it yet, but I think I will this one. Yeah, I thought it must have some fast paced moves in it according to it's back. Perhaps that could be a deck in **_**MtM**_**… Yes, Metal Overlord's deck is interesting so far. I think I'd like to see that deck myself, hehe.**

**Knives 91: Hehe, nice comment. Thanks for the compliment on the chapter.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Yep, Jaden has less life points, but with Neos out, who knows, he may make a comeback. What happens next you say? Well, the story! Thanks about the sequel.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Lol, maybe I can't admit defeat… or maybe it's not Yugi, hehe. Thanks for the comments.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: LOL! Yes, it has some fans. Yugioh fan fics are fun. Thanks about the Destiny Heroes being a nice twist. I originally was going to use Aster when I began writing this story, but KH2 changed all that, hehe. The duel seems interesting. Thanks once more for the review!**

**ardee: You helped tremendously with the sequel. Thanks for the credit. Heh, who says sitting around dreaming all day is bad for you, lol. Yes, the title is very appropriate like you told me it would be. Thanks for this being a great duel. Yeah, I figured an excellent opening move to prove his strength would be to have Roxas summon Dogma and smack Jaden down for 4k. I'd have to agree, I like Dogma better than Plasma, who isn't bad, just sort of bad, lol. Thanks for the review!**

**Well, that's it for today. Sorry for this being a bit late. I got wrapped up with actual work this morning, so it kind of hampered posting time. Oh well, at least I got it out. At any rate, thank you everyone for the reviews. Till next time, enjoy!**

**Chapter 59**

Picking up a new card, Roxas lightly smirked. "I'll summon Destiny Hero – Diamond Dude (1400/1600) in defense."

A slight glow formed on the field, and from it was a man with a green tattered cap, long grey hair, black leather pants and a black shirt, a diamond looking mask over his eyes, and many diamonds covering his body, some sticking out at least two feet.

"Diamond Dude has a pretty neat party trick. He lets me flip the top card on my deck. If it's a spell card, it goes to my Graveyard and next turn, in my Standby Phase, I get to activate it. Let's see now what my card is!"

Drawing a card, Roxas smirked once more and showed it to Jaden. "It's my spell Destiny Draw, so this goes to my Graveyard, but it'll be back next turn. At that, I'll end my turn." (Jaden 1300, Roxas 7100)

Picking up a card, Jaden smiled, saying "It's time I introduced you to one of my Neo Spacian friends. Say hello to Neo-Spacian Dark Panther (1000/500)!"

Roaring onto the field was a black panther with a black flowing cape and green collar to hold it in place.

"I activate Dark Panther's special ability. You see, he's a bit of a copy cat. He allows me to copy one of your monster's special abilities and let me use it, so Dark Panther, copy Diamond Dude's effect. That means I get to flip the top card on my deck, and if it's a spell, it goes to my Grave, but activates my next turn. So, let's see what I turn up."

Drawing a card, Jaden examined it and smiled. Turning it to Roxas, he said "It's my Graceful Charity, so next turn it activates."

Placing the spell card into his Graveyard Slot, Jaden returned his attention to Roxas, saying "Neos, take down Diamond Dude with Cosmic Crush!"

Leaping into the air, the white skinned warrior landed a heavy right hand into the diamond studded warrior, who buckled under the pressure and finally exploded into millions of pieces.

"Dark Panther, you're up, so attack directly with Dark Swipes!"

Running forward, the panther leapt into the air a few feet from Roxas and swiped it's claws across his chest, making Roxas cry out in pain.

"That's it for now." (Jaden 1300, Roxas 6100)

Lightly growling, Roxas drew his next card, but instantly smirked at the card. Returning his attention to the duel, he called out "First, the effect of Diamond Dude kicks in, so now my Destiny Draw activates. For it's effect, I gotta ditch a Destiny Hero, so I send Destiny Hero – Disk Dude. Next, I pick up two cards from my deck."

Drawing his two cards, Roxas examined them with an evil smirk. "I activate my trap card, Pact of Greed. This trap let's us each draw a card from our decks."

Together, the pair drew a new card. Smirking once more, Roxas added "I summon this, my second Destiny Hero – Doom Lord (600/800)!"

The same monster that Roxas had played earlier that wore a tattered red cape with black body armor, had long sharp claws, a white head which was covered up to his eyes, and a head piece that surrounded his head and shoulders appeared.

"Time for Doom Lord to send your Neos packing! Use your Impending Doom on Neos now!"

Rushing forward before the white warrior could react, the creature in the red tattered robe pressed his claws up against the warrior. In a flash of light, the white warrior vanished without a trace.

"Hey, what did you just do with Neos?" Jaden asked, somewhat confused.

Lightly chuckling, Roxas replied "I just sent him into the future. He's removed from play right now, but in two of my Standby Phases, he'll return. To end my move, I'll place two cards face down." (Jaden 1300, Roxas 6100)

"Without Neos, Jaden is in a bit of a disadvantage." Alexis mumbled.

Frowning, Illidan softly replied "Not necessarily. Jaden is smart, he'll make it work."

"I hope so." was all Alexis responded with.

Picking up a new card, Jaden examined it. Lightly smiling, he called out "To start with, Dark Panther's effect from last turn kicks in. Remember, he copied Diamond Dude's effect, and I flipped a card with it, so now it activates! That means Graceful Charity powers up, and I get to draw three new cards, but I have to send two to my Grave when I finish."

Drawing three cards, Jaden examined them and finally said "I'll place these two cards in my Grave. Next, I summon Neo-Spacian Air Hummingbird (800/600)!"

Materializing onto the field was a human sized red humming bird that stood tall, with white feathery wings on it's back, talons for hands and feet, and a long like bill.

"Thanks to Air Hummingbird's special ability, I gain 500 life points per a card in your hand."

Taking to the air, the bird glowed light green, causing pink flowers to bloom from Roxas's left hand that held his cards. The hummingbird immediately flew over to the flowers and began to suck nectar from them, making Jaden lightly glow green. Once finished, the bird returned to Jaden's field, causing the flowers to vanish from Roxas's hand.

"Air Hummingbird, attack Doom Lord with Aerial Slash!"

Launching itself back into the air, the bird rushed furiously towards the weaker black armored warrior. With a slash of the bird's talons, the red caped warrior was shattered, leaving nothing to defend Roxas.

Once the warrior vanished, Roxas called out "You won't get a free pass to my life points that easily! I activate the trap Destiny Signal, which lets me special summon a new Destiny Hero from my deck or hand, so long as it's level four or lower. I choose my second Destiny Hero – Captain Tenacious (800/800) from my deck!"

A searchlight went flying into the air with a D shaped symbol. From the light, a long orange haired warrior with a black mask, a chiseled chest, powerful arms with shields strapped to his arms, and blue-green armor on his legs appeared.

"Pretty awesome monster." Jaden said with kindness.

"Thanks, but don't expect him to be a push over." Roxas bantered back.

Smirking, Jaden replied "We'll see. Dark Panther, attack Captain Tenacious with Dark Swipes!"

Roaring, the panther leapt forward, claws extended, towards the warrior with shields on both arms.

Before the panther could strike, Roxas called out "It's not that easy! I reveal my trap, D-Shield!"

The warrior suddenly shifted into a defensive stance, pulling his shields in towards his body. Electricity slightly coursed on the outside of his body, showing the power built up in the warrior's stance. The panther continued on and swiped it's claw at the warrior, only making a scratching sound across the shield with it's claws. Leaping back, the panther lightly growled in frustration.

"Gotta love D-Shield since it saves my monster. You see, it switches a Destiny Hero into defense mode, then it becomes an equip card that keeps my monster from being destroyed due to battle."

Frowning, Jaden lightly sighed, saying "Very well then, I end my move." (Jaden 2300, Roxas 5900)

Drawing a card, Roxas smirked and said "I summon Destiny Hero – Fear Monger (1000/1000)!"

An olive colored warrior with what looked like a set of jet wings on his back, a jet like engine weapon on his right arm, sharp clawed fingers on the other hand, and solid armor covering his body appeared onto the field with a small battle cry.

"Fear Monger, attack his little birdy with Fear Burst!"

Taking to the air with his jet pack on his back at full thrust, the warrior flew straight towards the red bird. Shocked, the red bird froze up, but was effortlessly run over by the jet creature, leaving Jaden slightly growling from the loss.

"I end my move at that." (Jaden 2100, Roxas 5900)

Extracting a new card from his deck, Jaden lightly smiled, saying "Not bad, but I've got a better trick. I summon Elemental Hero Wildheart (1500/1600)!"

A tanned warrior with a tied back black pony tail, a goatee, a strange red set of tattoos on his chest and shoulders, a bare chest and arms, a large sword on his back in a sheath, and a white loin cloth.

"Wildheart, show him that big bad sword is for more than show! Attack Fear Monger with Wild Slash!"

Letting out a battle cry, the warrior unsheathed his sword and rushed forward. With a leap, the warrior brought the sword down hard through the olive creature, slashing it completely in half. A large explosion followed from the slash while the warrior leapt back to Jaden's field.

"I'll throw down a face down and call it a turn." (Jaden 2100, Roxas 5400)

Smirking while he drew, Roxas said "You're finished this turn Jaden."

Raising his eyebrows, Jaden asked "How do you figure?"

"You'll see. First of all, in my Standby Phase, Captain Tenacious's special ability kicks in. Once per a turn, he can revive a Destiny Hero that was destroyed in battle, so I return Destiny Hero – Fear Monger (1000/1000) to the field!"

Rising up once more, the olive skinned warrior with a jet pack that had wings appeared onto the field.

"There is more though, for Fear Monger had a special ability as well. When he was destroyed, his effect allowed me to revive a Destiny Hero from my Graveyard, so I choose to bring back my Destiny Hero – Disk Dude (200/300)!"

Appearing onto the field was a silver and light blue warrior with two buzzing discs on his shoulders, two more on his hips, and one in each hand.

"Thanks to Disk Dude's effect when he's special summoned from the Graveyard, I get to draw two cards."

Picking up a pair of cards, Roxas examined them and smirked. His smirk lightly faded though when a ripple appeared on Jaden's field. From the ripple, the white skinned warrior from earlier reappeared.

"You forgot all about Elemental Hero Neos (2500/2100), now didn't you? Well, he returns this turn also, so thanks." Jaden slyly said.

Waving it off, Roxas commented "It matters not. I'm about to summon a monster that is by far stronger than anything you've ever seen! Prepare to meet your worst nightmare! I sacrifice all three of my monsters in order to summon the ultimate Destiny Hero! Meet my Destiny Hero – Plasma (1900/600)!"

The three warriors suddenly transformed into red liquid. Without warning, the three broke apart into three massive puddles. Slowly, the puddles collected into one and began to rise up off the floor. Bit by bit, the puddle took a shape. First, massive black bat wings with red bone formed. Next, maroon armor formed while large blade like spike erupted from the sides of the creature's chest and shoulders. The left arm of the monster next formed normally, but the right became a maroon dragon's head instead of an arm. Finally, the head formed. The top of it's head was pointed and held a dragon's head helmet. The face of the monster was hidden mostly by a mask, but revealed yellow eerie eyes. Blood soon began to seep from the creature's armor, slowly dripping onto the field.

"Eww, what a disgusting creature!" Alexis said as she pulled back.

"Most definitely ugly." Chazz added.

Staring at the creature, Jaden lightly giggled, saying "That's the ultimate Destiny Hero? He's kind of strange looking, but kind of harmless I think."

"Harmless, eh?" Roxas mocked. "You're about to see how harmless he is. I activate Plasma's effect, which allows him to absorb a monster from your field, so I pick Elemental Hero Neos!"

A wire of blood shot out from the right black wing of the dripping monster and wrapped itself around the white warrior. Shocked, the white warrior struggled, but was yanked back towards the horrifying creature. After a moment more of struggling, the creature yanked the white warrior into it's wing, where the white warrior vanished. Moments later, the warrior's face was seen struggling up against the muscle of the blood creature, but finally vanished once more.

"What have you done with Neos!?" Jaden yelled, easily giving away his worry and anger.

Chuckling, Roxas smartly replied "He's still here, just within Plasma. Time for the fun part of this process. When Neos was absorbed, he became an equip card to Plasma, granting half of his attack points to Plasma (1900 + 2500/2 3150/600)."

The blood soaked creature glowed crimson for a moment while more blood spattered to the ground. When the glow died down, the face of the white warrior once more poked up against the muscle of the wing, but soon vanished once more.

"And just to make sure you don't do anything to Plasma, I play the spell D-Force. By playing this, I must place this card on top of my deck face up. As long as it's there, Plasma is unaffected by spell, trap, or monster effects. In other words, he invincible!"

Sneering at Jaden, Roxas cried out "NOW DISAPPEAR INTO NOTHINGNESS JADEN AND LET MY MEMORIES RETURN! PLASMA, ATTACK THAT FLEA BAG CAT WITH RAINING BLOOD!"

Spreading it's wings, the blood coated creature began releasing a barrage of blood colored energy bolts at the weaker black panther.

Before the blasts could hit, Jaden called out "I'm not beat yet! I activate the trap Elemental Recharge, which lets me gain 1000 life points per an Elemental Hero on my field. Since I only have one, I gain 1000 points, giving me enough points to survive your little attack!"

Growling lightly with frustration, Roxas responded with "That's fine, but you won't be here much longer!"

The blasts of blood colored energy began striking the weaker panther, making it roar out loud when it exploded into millions of pieces. Once the panther was gone, the remainder of the blasts struck Jaden, making him fall to his knees while he screamed in agony. Sitting on his hands and knees, he sat there, panting hard, sweat dripping off of his face.

"Look how pathetic you are. This duel will not end well for you Jaden, I promise you that. I place a card face down, and shall give you a chance to create some kind of defenses." (Jaden 950, Roxas 5400)

Seeing Jaden still on his knees and hands, Chazz called out with encouragement "Get up you Slacker!"

"Jaden, we know you can do this! Come on and show him!" Alexis encouraged.

Watching Jaden still pant hard, Illidan pondered the situation. "_Jaden has to be exhausted. That creature, it seems like it was bred for Shadow Games in specific. I can feel the evil coming from it. Jaden, I know you're strong, but can even you persevere through this?_"

Brushing the thoughts away, Illidan shook his head. "_No, he will make it. He has to._"

With great pain crossing his face, Jaden slowly stood up. Wincing when he stood up straight, Jaden struggled to draw a card. With labored breaths, he said "I'm not… finished… with this duel… just yet."

Taking a moment to catch his breath a bit more, he slowly added "I'll throw down a face down, and play the spell Mirage of Nightmare. With this, during your Standby Phase, I get to draw till I hold four cards in my hand, but during my Standby Phase, I must discard the same number I drew. To end, I switch Wildheart to defense."

Taking a knee, the tanned warrior placed his sword back within it's sheath and crossed his arms. (Jaden 950, Roxas 5400)

"How pathetic." Roxas stated. Looking at his deck, he continued with "Unfortunately, due to the effect of D-Force, I can't enter my Draw Phase, so I bypass it to my Standby Phase."

Smiling, Jaden interrupted, saying "Perfect, because Mirage of Nightmare lets me draw cards now, so I pick up four cards."

While Jaden drew his cards, Roxas only chuckled, saying "You're not the only one who can draw cards. I activate my trap card, D-Force, which lets me draw two new cards underneath of D-Force."

Picking up his two new cards, Roxas evilly smiled, saying "This is the end of you Jaden. I play the spell Curse of Fiend. Thanks to this card, the modes of our monsters switch, hence your Wildheart is now vulnerable."

Struggling to keep from standing, the tanned warrior gritted his teeth while standing up.

"But that means Plasma goes to defense." Jaden pointed out.

Chuckling, Roxas shook his head, saying "As long as D-Force is out, he is unaffected by spell, trap, or monster effects, remember? That means even my own won't harm him."

"No…" Jaden mouthed with wide eyes.

Pointing at the tanned warrior, Roxas cried out "Finish this duel now Plasma with Raining Blood!"

Spreading his wings once more, the blood coated creature released a valley of energy blasts that were blood colored at the tanned warrior.

Seeing the oncoming assault, Jaden pointed at his face down, saying "Not so fast, I'm not finished yet. I play the spell Emergency Provisions. This card lets me sacrifice a spell or trap on my field and then I gain 1000 life points. I send Mirage of Nightmare to the Grave with this effect, thus gaining 1000 life points!"

Growling loudly, Roxas yelled out "You can avoid losing as long as you like, but you will eventually fall! Plasma, make him pay!"

The blood colored energy blasts continued on, striking the tanned warrior hard, making him scream out in pain. The blasts finally tore him apart and started striking Jaden, causing Jaden to scream out in agony. Finally, the blasts stopped raining down upon him, allowing Jaden to drop to the ground onto his side.

"You are finished! On my next turn, I'll wipe you out! For now, enjoy the last breaths of your pitiful life!" Roxas boasted with maniacal laughter. (Jaden 300, Roxas 5400)

"Come on Jaden, get up!" Alexis called out, hoping to get some kind of reaction.

"Slacker, don't let this loser beat you!" Chazz added.

Their words appeared to be going upon death ears, for Jaden didn't stir. He only laid on the ground, not moving an inch.

"Jaden…" Illidan murmured.

After what seemed an eternity, Jaden began to stir. Struggling, he attempted to stand back up, only to fall back down. A minute passed, and finally Jaden tried standing again. With difficulty, he managed to stand up, but was hunched over with his bangs hiding his eyes.

Sneering at Jaden, Roxas asked "Giving up finally?"

Light chuckling was heard, and Jaden slowly revealed his face. A smile was upon it as he slowly said "Not a chance. You just don't get it."

Revealing his whole face, Jaden showed his confident eyes, saying "A duel isn't over till the last card is played, and I still have plenty of cards to play."

"And you don't get it either. You haven't learned a thing throughout this duel. If you were smart, you'd surrender rather than suffer. Why continue your suffering?" Roxas asked.

"Because, I believe in what I'm fighting for! I have friends counting on me! I care too much to quit now, and I promised I'd help them! What kind of friend would I be if I quit now!?" Jaden demanded.

Smirking, Roxas responded with "A smart one."

Sighing, Jaden muttered "You'll never understand."

Drawing his card, he cried out "That's why I have to stop you!"

Glancing at his card, he held it out, saying "I play the spell Pot of Greed, meaning I get to draw two more cards!"

Quickly picking up two cards, Jaden smiled, saying "This duel is over this turn!"

"It's over when I say it's over Jaden, or have you forgotten that?" Roxas countered.

Lightly chuckling, Jaden shook his head, saying "No, it's over this turn, because I have the power to stop you! For all those that are counting on me, I must win! I'll start by playing the spell Silent Doom! Thanks to this, I can bring back a monster from my Graveyard in defense mode, so I choose Hero Kid (300/600)!"

A kid in red and white futuristic armor with some black on it's legs and arms, with jet boots, a domed helmet, a red mask that covered most of their face, an orange bandanna, and messy purple hair appeared in a defensive stance.

"Wait, I never destroyed that monster!" Roxas protested.

Nodding, Jaden replied "You're right, you didn't, but I did. Remember Graceful Charity? I discarded Hero Kid then, hoping to bring him back later, and what better a time than now? Now then, on with what I was saying. When Hero Kid is special summoned, his effect goes off, which let's me special summon each and every Hero Kid I have from my deck, so I special summon two more (300/600) x 2!"

Two more kids that looked exactly like the first one, materialized onto the field, each taking up a defensive stance.

"Next, I play the spell Monster Reborn and bring back the headliner of my deck, Elemental Hero Flame Wingman (2100/1200)!"

Rematerializing onto the field, the large green and black warrior with a dragon head for a right arm took up a fighting stance.

"Foolish move Jaden. Plasma is far stronger than any of your creatures. Your pathetic attempts to survive are wasted." Roxas commented.

Smirking, Jaden replied "It may seem so, but I'm far from done. I play the spell R – Righteous Justice! Thanks to this spell, for each Elemental Hero on my field, I can destroy a spell or trap card on your field."

Laughing, Roxas called out "You fool! Destroying my field spell won't help you now!"

Chuckling, Jaden was quick to respond with "I'm not targeting your field spell."

"Then what in the blazes are you targeting?" Roxas asked.

Smirking once more, Jaden said "Remember, you stole a monster from me with Plasma. I think it's time to free him. After all, you turned him into an equip card."

Roxas's face blanched white at those words. In the wing of the blood soaked creature, the white warrior's face pressed up against the skin, trying once more to get out.

"You wouldn't!" Roxas worriedly stated.

Pointing at the blood creature, Jaden replied "I would! I release Neos now!"

A bright red light came flying from the green spell card on the field, striking the blood soaked creature's wing, right where the white warrior had been. The wing glowed brightly for a moment, and without warning, the white warrior came flying out of it.

"NO!" Roxas screamed when he saw his monster weakening (3150 – 1250 1900/600).

Flying across the field, the white warrior looked at Jaden gratefully. "You're free Neos." Jaden kindly said as the warrior vanished.

Pulling another card out, Jaden called out "I play another spell, O – Oversoul! With this, I can bring back one Elemental Hero from my Graveyard to the field, so I pick the one I just freed, Elemental Hero Neos (2500/2100)!"

Reappearing onto the field, the white warrior took up an offensive stance and glared at the blood soaked creature.

"There is only one last thing to do. You said you wanted my Egyptian God Card, so I'm going to give it to you!" Jaden boldly called out.

"Is he…" Alexis began.

"He is!" Chazz finished.

Crying out, Jaden yelled "I sacrifice all three of my Hero Kids in order to summon Slifer the Sky Dragon (?/?)!"

The sky suddenly began to darken even more than it had. The moon was hidden and lightning began to form. Soon enough, a large red and black snake like body was seen descending from the sky. Massive red wings were revealed, as were a set of powerful clawed hands. Slowly, the massive head of the red dragon was revealed. It's two jaws were closed, it's yellow eyes seemingly glaring at it's foes. With a massive roar, the dragon took it's place on the field.

Staring wide eyed at the dragon, Roxas mumbled "It's over… All my hard work, all for nothing." Looking down, a tear escaped his eye, as he whispered "I'm sorry Namine. I wasn't there for you when you lost, but I'll join you soon enough in the Shadow Realm."

"Let's end this! Flamed Wingman, put his Destiny Hero – Plasma down with Infernal Rage!" Jaden called out with a commanding voice.

Leaping into the air, the black and green creature took aim with it's dragon arm, which opened it's jaws and released a stream of flames. The blood soaked creature was encompassed by the flames, causing it to release an inhuman yell. The flames soon destroyed the creature, leaving nothing behind.

"Now, thanks to Flame Wingman's super power, he deals you damage equal to your monster's original attack points!"

Landing in front of Roxas, the black and green monster moved it's dragon arm to be targeting him. Opening it's jaws, the dragon arm released a stream of flames, making Roxas scream out in pain, causing him to sink to the ground.

"Slifer the Sky Dragon (1000/1000), direct attack him with Thunder Force!"

Roaring loudly, the red snake dragon opened it's massive jaws and shot out a beam of golden energy straight at Roxas. The blast pounded him into the ground, sending out a shockwave throughout the area. After a few moments, the blast subsided, revealing a beaten down Roxas.

Lightly sighing, Jaden pointed a finger at Roxas, saying "This is the end Roxas. I'm sorry it has to end, but it must! Neos, direct attack him with Cosmic Crush!"

Launching himself into the air, the white warrior came crashing down towards Roxas with his right arm pulled back. Coming down, the warrior extended his arm, smashing it into Roxas's body, flinging him away.

Closing his eyes while he laid on the ground, Roxas mumbled "I'm sorry Namine… I tried…"

Upon uttering his words, the last of his life points drained away, ending the duel. Jaden's Duel Disk powered down, causing his monsters to fade away, although the large red dragon stayed a moment longer. Glancing at Jaden, the dragon lightly nodded before fading away as well.

Roxas's body glowed black for a moment before finally becoming normal. Upon seeing this, Jaden fell to the ground, completely unconscious.

Rushing to Jaden, Illidan propped him up to make sure he was alright. Seeing that he was only asleep, Illidan let out a small sigh, saying "He's alright, just unconscious. I don't blame him really. That was one of the toughest duels I've seen him in."

"For sure." Chazz silently commented.

Lifting Jaden up onto his shoulder, Illidan said "Alexis, help me lift Roxas up onto my other shoulder."

Nodding, Alexis silently helped Illidan secure Roxas onto his other shoulder. Once both were on, he began walking back towards the dorms with Alexis and Chazz in tow.


	60. Chapter 60: Discoveries and Bitterness

**Hello once again everyone. Well, life has settled out somewhat since last time. My mate's mom was sent to a different hospital due that the one she was at thought she was getting ready to have another heart attack. She was nauseous, which is a small sign of a heart attack apparently. Anyways, at the other hospital, they found out that really, she hadn't had a heart attack. Apparently, the bone above her heart has been broken previously, and once and a while, it pains her**** at certain times. Well, early Tuesday morning, that apparently happened, plus she had the signs of the stomach flu starting, which probably made it seem worse. Really, the doctors at this other hospital couldn't understand why she was transferred to them… Pending on tests, she could be out today, or within the next few days if they do a certain procedure on her due to her tests. Either way, she'll be home soon, which my mate was really relieved to hear. Myself, I was happy to hear that too.**

**Also, last night, I talked with my friend from Kentucky. It was great to hear from her once more, and she invited me and my mate up for her wedding in August. Hehe, she made sure we had plenty of notice. Anyways, she was doing great, which I was happy to hear. Several of my friends that I've known online off of a site we all were on will be there, and if my mate goes, it'll make it so much better. Last time I went, my mate couldn't go, and in a way, I was miserable without her. I'm typically quiet and shy, but without my mate, I feel somewhat lost and even more timid I suppose. Heh, I suppose it's a trait both me and story Illidan share.**

**Writing wise, more **_**Another**_** work is done. I've been thinking on things for **_**Minutes to Midnight**_**, but I've been a bit lazy I suppose and haven't done any serious writing on it. Lol, doing 2 stories at once is not a wise idea my mate told me, but did I listen, NOOO!!! Lol, anyways, I have had some ideas and thoughts on some of the duels and stuff, so no worries.**

**Last time, Jaden managed to finish up his duel with Roxas, thus earning him soundly a victory. Now with the three Egyptian God Cards collected, what of the fourth? Can it be retrieved, or is it a hopeless dream?**

**Time once more for that best part of the day! Review Time!**

**Nathan: Thanks, and yes, true, I don't think I've ever seen a duel where Slifer only had 1000 attack points, well, other than with Yugi in Battle City. But he purposely did that one, lol. Yeah, Hero Kid was the easiest way to summon Slifer. Yep, they're moving onto the biggest challenge yet. Heh, yes, Metal Overlord's duel is certainly heating up.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Lol, Plasma is not up for you Marik. Interesting new weapon for Marik to be using, lol. Man, I remember Janempa from that movie. That thing was so annoying, and even worse in the video games. The freaking thing just wouldn't stay down! Well, not easily, lol. Thanks for the compliment on the duel. True, I was going to have Slifer play a bigger role originally, but then I figured, eh, Jaden could do it on his own, that he didn't need to rely on the power of Slifer, kind of like how Illidan didn't always rely on the power of Anubis. Still, I had to have him summon it, just to prove he could, and to use it a bit. Yes, Plasma is much more manageable than Dreadmaster. Dreadmaster is somewhat good, but not nearly as good as Plasma. Yes, obtaining Anubis is next. Who will do it, we'll see.**

**Knives91: Lol, thanks. It's cool to be hyper, although my mate doesn't like it when I am and it's bed time. Just because I ate 6 or 7 high in sugar popsicles before bed and am on a sugar high doesn't mean I can't sleep, right? (/Smacked in the back of the head by mate.\) Maybe not…**

**x-knight20: Thanks. It's cool about not reviewing. Life happens, which I knew it would for many, including me, lol. Yep, only one card left. Hmm, Illidan ask Atticus to duel Anubis… That would be interesting. Actually, no he wasn't an Anubis Dorm Student. The dorm was closed before he came to the school. There goes that plan, maybe…**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Yep, the 3 are saved once more, lol. Good question about Legato taking over since Zell has failed him. Maybe he'll challenge Illidan… Yep, the truth is out there, and coming here soon, lol. Thank you about my mate's mom. She's feeling much better, so we're all just thinking it was the broken bone thing that was really hurting her.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Thanks, and yeah, grandpa is faring well for now. Lol, Ryon, learn to quit picking fights.**

**Isis the Sphinx: LOL! It could be Yugi… It's Friday now, so you happier? Thanks for the comments.**

**Okay, that's it for me today. Thank you everyone for your reviews. I really do appreciate them. They're very helpful in helping me determine how good a job I'm doing, and apparently, I'm doing a decent job on my writing thus far, lol. But really, thank you all for your help and reviews. Well, anyways, I'm headed out, so have a great weekend and enjoy!**

**Chapter 60**

Sniffing the ground once more, Pharaoh examined the mouth of a cave he had found. Staring into the darkness, he took another sniff and swiveled his ears, making sure there was no one close by.

Satisfied at last, he began to slowly move into the cave. Cautiously, he continued to move through the cave, glancing left and right occasionally.

"_There it is! Her scent if most definitely in here._" Banner quietly thought.

Moving deeper into the cave, he found a scent that hung heavily upon the cave, telling him it was the kidnapper. "_Most definitely, this is Master Legato's scent. I'd recognize it anywhere. He stayed here, but it seems his scent goes further back into the cave._"

Creeping along, the cat followed the scent. Finally coming upon a cavern, a new scent, yet familiar one, permeated his senses.

Looking upon the wall, he saw the one he desired to find. Rushing up to stand in front of the young woman hanging from the wall, he called out "_Marie!_"

Opening her closed eyes, Marie blurry eyes saw a figure that looked like a cat. After a moment of concentrating, it became clear to her it was Pharaoh.

"Is that really you Banner?" she weakly asked.

"_Yes, I'm here! Thank heavens I found you. Let's get you down and leave here, post haste!_"

Sighing, Marie shook her head and dejectedly said "I can't."

Bristling up, Banner growled out "_And why not!? I went to a lot of trouble to track you down! We have to get you out of here before Legato returns and finds out I found where you are. Now come on, I need you to break those bonds with your Shadow Powers._"

"You don't understand Banner. I've been poisoned. The more I use my Shadow Powers, the more it accelerates the poison."

Taking a moment to ponder her response, Banner remarked "_That is a problem._"

"Yes, it is. Besides, I can't feel anything below my waist. All I'd be able to do is crawl away, and I highly doubt I could get away before Zell returns."

"_Zell?_" Banner questioned.

"The body Legato is in belongs to a person I knew in the past known as Zell. Legato has apparently commandeered it now since Zell is proving unreliable." she mused.

Grumbling for a moment, Banner swished his tail back and forth, trying to think of what to do. Finally, he came up with a plan, saying "_I'll go get Illidan. He'll be able to carry you out of here._"

"But I don't know if there is time. Please, be careful. Don't lead Illidan here if Zell is." Marie protested.

Nodding, Pharaoh turned around, saying "_Can do. Please, stay strong a bit longer. I promise, I'll get help._"

"Right." Marie whispered.

Rushing off back through the caverns, Pharaoh made his way for the door, but was cautious along the way, occasionally stopping to sniff the air. Finally making it outside, the cat let out a small sigh of relief.

"Well, well, what have we here?" a voice calmly asked.

Flinching, Pharaoh slowly turned around to find Legato staring at him in the moonlight. Unsure what to do, he did the only thing he could think of to make himself less noticeable. Simply meowing, he stood there, hoping it would cause Legato to move on.

"You can drop the act Banner. I know it is you." Legato coolly said.

"_Meow?_" Banner playfully said, hoping it would pass for a cat's real meow.

Chuckling darkly, Legato shook his head, saying "You can't fool me. Last I had heard, you passed on during the duel Jaden Yuki had with Kagemaru. Interesting, you yet survive, but in a cat's body."

Seeing his ruse wasn't working, Banner replied "_Not by choice._"

"Of course." Legato remarked with a smirk. "So, the rumors were true. There is a talking cat on the island."

"_Oh no, I can't talk to anyone. I've tried and tried, but no one hears me. It must be due to your impressive Shadow Powers that you can hear me my wonderful Master._" Banner rambled on. In his mind, he was sick to say the words, but knew it was better to keep playing dumb.

Raising an eyebrow, Legato asked "Really? I believe those rumors are more than likely correct."

"_No, no, no one can understand me. Believe me, I've tried very hard to get everyone's attention, but no one hears me._"

"Is that so?" a voice asked.

Turning to face the new voice, Banner saw who the voice belonged to, and said with wide eyes "_It can't be…_"

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Slowly, Jaden began to stir from his sleep. Opening his eyes, he saw he was in a different bed than his own. Sitting up, he walked out of the room and realized he was in Illidan and Marie's house. Searching out Illidan, he walked downstairs to find him in a meditative state.

"Illidan?" he cautiously asked.

Opening his eyes, Illidan smiled at Jaden. "Good to see you're up. I was starting to think you were going to sleep all day."

"How long was I out?"

Thinking for a moment, Illidan finally replied "Since last night. It's three in the afternoon now, so over half a day."

"Oh…"

"How do you feel?"

Smiling, Jaden responded with "Better. I was so exhausted when that duel ended last night."

Chuckling, Illidan replied "I couldn't tell. I'm glad you're alright though."

"Thanks."

"Hungry?"

Nodding eagerly, Illidan said "Alright, I'll whip us up something."

Nearly ten minutes later, the two were sitting at the table eating beef flavored Ramen. The pair ate in quiet for the most part.

Finishing up, Illidan broke the silence. "Well, there is only one last thing to do now that we have the three Egyptian God Cards."

"Oh? What's that?" Jaden asked, curious to what Illidan meant.

"I'll tell you soon. Chazz and Alexis should be coming back soon. Both went to get cleaned up before you woke up."

"Ok. I guess I should clean up a bit myself." Jaden said after taking a glance at himself.

Nodding, Illidan smiled, saying "Go ahead. I brought some clothes from your room over. They're in the room you stayed in last night."

"K." Jaden simply replied as he got up and headed upstairs.

Picking up the bowls, Illidan took them into the kitchen and washed up the dishes. Seeing no one was around once more, Illidan decided to continue his on going search he had begun the night Marie was kidnapped.

Stretching out with his Shadow Powers, Illidan scanned the island for Shadow Powers, but like always, found no unusual fluctuations. Pushing harder, he frantically searched for any residual signs of her energy, but like before, nothing showed up.

Letting out a light growl of frustration, Illidan opened his eyes. Sighing, he looked out the window. "_Where could she be? Surely if she was on the island, I'd be able to sense Marie's Shadow Powers._"

Frowning, Illidan silently pondered a new thought. "_Unless, Zell decided to hide her energy. He knows I have the ability to sense Shadow Powers, so he'd try and hide her I'm sure. He must be using a barrier like I used on the shrines to hide her. That would explain why I can't sense her._"

Heavily sighing, Illidan stood up and glanced out the window. "_Only one more obstacle stands in my way from getting Marie back. I have to overcome it, no matter what. This will be my greatest challenge probably. The last time I faced this creature, it took all I had and then some to win. I only hope I can win this duel._"

Looking back at the table that held his deck, Illidan walked over to it and picked up his deck. Rummaging through it, he stared at the three cards he had just added within the last few nights.

"_These three cards have served me well in the past, and I know they'll serve me well once more. I just have to believe in myself, in my deck, and that I can save Marie. I promised long ago to protect her, and I still mean to fulfill that oath. No matter the cost, I will save her._"

Hearing a knock at the door, Illidan set his deck back down and went to the door. Opening it, he saw Alexis and Chazz both standing there. "Come on in." Illidan kindly said, opening the door fully.

Walking in, Chazz and Alexis took seats on the couch. Coming downstairs, Jaden smiled, saying "Hey guys!"

"Hey Jaden! You doing alright?" Alexis asked with concern.

Nodding, he smiled once more, saying "Yep, I'm doing great. That nap really helped me out."

"Good to hear you're not down and out yet Slacker." Chazz commented.

"Thanks Chazz." Jaden replied with a smile.

Clearing his throat, Illidan said "Now that everyone is here, I need to tell you all something important.

With everyone seated, Illidan smiled, saying "First of all, I'm very proud of all three of you. Each of you has done amazing things to get the Egyptian God Cards, not to mention I'm very impressed that each of you can summon the card you received."

Turning serious, Illidan added "Although the three Egyptian God Cards are collected, there is one more task to perform before we can try to save Marie. We must collect the fourth Egyptian God Card from it's resting place."

"Fourth!?" Alexis sputtered.

"But there are only three!" Chazz exclaimed.

"Professor Illidan, there are only three! Right?" Jaden questioned.

Shaking his head, Illidan sadly smiled, saying "No, there are four."

"But the fourth has never been mentioned!" Alexis countered.

"True, there has never been mention of the fourth, but for good reason." Illidan replied.

Taking a deep breath, Illidan slowly began explaining. "As you know, the three Egyptian God Cards were at one time wielded by three duelists. Obelisk the Tormentor was in Seto Kaiba's possession, Yugi Moto controlled Slifer the Sky Dragon, and Marik Ishtar had ownership of The Winged Dragon of Ra. After the Battle City Tournament though, Yugi Moto possessed all three."

"Right, I watched that on television." Jaden chimed in.

Alexis and Chazz nodded too, each saying "We did too."

Nodding in return, Illidan continued on, saying "A few months later, another tournament was thrown, one that wasn't made public. Before the start of the tournament, Yugi returned two of the cards to their previous owners. Seto and Marik each received the card they once controlled."

"Why?" Alexis asked, curiosity brimming from her eyes.

Smiling, Illidan responded with "He felt as if something big was about to happen. He also returned the Millennium Items to their previous owners."

"Not long after that, a tournament known as Tournament of Power was created by a mysterious host. Ten of the world's strongest players were selected for it. The ten consisted of Seto Kaiba, Yugi Moto, Marik Ishtar, Joey Wheeler, Noa Kaiba, Mai Valentine, Bandit Keith, Bakura Ryou, and finally, the last two were no names to the main dueling world."

Softly smiling, Illidan said "Those two no names were myself and Marie."

"WHAT!?" the three screamed at once.

Chuckling, Illidan responded "I thought you all might say that, but believe it or not, it was true."

"So, why you two? If you two weren't major duelists, why the two of you?" Chazz asked.

Shrugging, Illidan remarked with "I'm unsure, but I think it had to do with the tournament host. His name was Gozaburo Kaiba. No one knew he was the host till we arrived at the island. Anyways, before we left for the tournament, I received the Millennium Key, a Millennium Item I possessed in my past life. I was warned then that something big was going down at the tournament."

"The tournament went on for nearly two or so weeks. At the end, I stood on top and was set to face the champion, Gozaburo."

"You beat Yugi!? And Seto!?" Jaden asked in shock.

Nodding, Illidan smiled, saying "Yes, I did. I beat everyone at the tournament."

"No way…" Chazz murmured.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan replied "Yes way Chazz. I know it's hard to believe, but it happened. Anyways, I faced Gozaburo, who was the descendant of the man whom I had faced in my past life. He used an evil Millennium Item known as the Millennium Crown. That Item had been sealed away long ago by me and others in my past life, but unfortunately, this Gozaburo found it, along with something even worse. We came to find out there was a fourth Egyptian God Card."

Frowning, he continued, saying "Pegasus had apparently created it right before he created the other three. The card was named Anubis, The God of Life and Death. After creating it, Pegasus lost complete control of it. The card was far too powerful for him to control with the Shadow Magic in his Millennium Eye." 

"Wait, I thought Millennium Items helped control the Egyptian Gods?" Jaden asked.

Nodding, Illidan replied "Correct, but this card was too powerful for that. You see, this Egyptian God was the original Egyptian God of Egypt. He was split into three due that he was far too dangerous. Hence, the three became Slifer, Ra, and Obelisk."

"Oh…" Alexis muttered.

"Yeah, big oh." Chazz sarcastically added.

Lightly chuckling at them, Illidan said "Since the card was too dangerous for Pegasus, he sealed it away. Gozaburo though found it, and took control of it. I barely managed to beat the card due to it's unique abilities."

"Abilities?" Chazz asked with a furrowed brow.

In a serious tone, Illidan said "It has the powers of all three Egyptian Gods and then some. It's far too dangerous."

"After beating the card, I took possession of it. I sparingly used it, trying hard not to reveal it. About eleven years ago, when the other three Egyptian God Cards were being sealed away, I sealed that card away also, but not in the same area as the others."

"So, where is it?" Chazz asked, unsure what Illidan was saying.

Sighing, Illidan said "It's buried in the abandoned dorm."

"That explains what happened last year." Jaden murmured.

Curious, Illidan asked "What do you mean?"

"Me, Alexis, Sy, and Chumley all went to that dorm last year." he slowly responded.

Looking down, Alexis added "I went there in search of some clues to my brother's disappearance."

Continuing, Jaden said "She instead got kidnapped by this guy who claimed to have a Millennium Item, but he was just a fake. His item was made out of papier-mâché for crying out loud! Once I found that out, I exposed him thoroughly. Only problem was, once exposed, a real Shadow Game began. The Shadows somehow took his body over, but I won the duel. Winged Kuriboh protected me from the results I'm guessing."

"I see." Illidan murmured, seemingly lost in thought. Waking from his thoughts, Illidan said "Well, the abandoned dorm once had a name. When the school first opened, it was known as the Anubis Dorm. It was the top ranked dorm instead of Obelisk."

Lightly sighing, Illidan continued on, saying "I buried the card within the bottom of the dorm, thinking it would be safer if it was separated a bit from the other Egyptian God Cards. I'm guessing I was wrong."

Frowning, Illidan added "The guardian most likely was overwhelmed by Anubis, hence why so many terrible things have happened in that dorm."

Patting Illidan on the shoulder, Jaden softly smiled, saying "You didn't know it would happen."

"Yeah… But I should have anticipated it." Illidan countered.

"Well, there is no sense in worrying about it now. What's done is done." Chazz stated.

Nodding, Illidan smiled, saying "Yes, that's true. Anyways, tonight, we must go to collect this last card."

Standing up, Alexis asked "Who is going to duel for the card?"

Also standing up, Illidan replied "Myself."

"Huh?" the three asked simultaneously.

"I will duel the guardian for Anubis. There are no restrictions on who duels the guardian, unlike the others. The only stipulation is that the three Egyptian God Cards are gathered and used to open the doorway to where this card lies." Illidan explained.

"But are you sure you want to duel the guardian? Without an Egyptian God Card, you might not be able to handle this guy." Jaden argued.

Smiling, Illidan replied "Actually, when I defeated Anubis last time, I didn't use an Egyptian God Card. I had tried using all three against Anubis, but none of them were strong enough to beat him. In the end, I used my three Chaos monsters to beat Anubis. The guardian was the actual monster that landed the final blow to win me the match."

"What monster is it!?" Jaden asked, seemingly excited.

Lightly chuckling at his enthusiasm, Illidan waved him off, saying "You'll see soon enough. This monster was the closest to me. He was the Duel Spirit that accompanied me throughout this life and my previous life."

"Cool." Jaden simply replied.

Looking at a clock, Illidan calmly said "Let's get moving."

"Right!" the three said in unison.

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About dark, the group was trekking their way across the forest towards the abandoned dorm. Soon enough, they arrived at the eerie dorm. It was bathed in moonlight, giving off it's strange glow.

"That's just freaky looking." Chazz noted aloud.

"Tell me about it." Alexis added.

"Ah, it's not that bad. It's the inside that's worse." Jaden commented.

Lightly chuckling at the three, Illidan called out "Come on, let's go on in."

Leading the group, Illidan made the way into the dorm. Following a set of stairs towards the lower level, Jaden commented "This is the same way I went when I took on Professor Banner."

"Yes, it's nearly the lowest part of the dorm. Here, the Shadow Magic is stronger." Illidan stated.

Calmly walking on, the group came into a large room with a strange mark in the floor. Walking to the center, Illidan held out his hand, which glowed light black.

"Guys, draw your Egyptian God Cards and hold them over my hand." Illidan commanded.

Each nodded and drew the card in their possession from their decks. Holding them over Illidan's hand caused a reaction on the ground. Opening up before them was a hole, which had stairs at a diagonal.

Moving forward, Illidan slowly made his way down the stairwell. The others followed closely, each on guard.

Finding a larger room at the bottom of the stairwell, the group saw a figure on the far end of the room, seemingly staring towards them. The figure was dressed in tight fitting white leather armor, had blue skin, white hair, and had a strange mage's hat on his head.

Motioning for the others to stay back, Illidan moved forward towards the figure, which seemed to pay no heed to him. With only ten feet of distance separating the two, the figure opened his eyes, revealing yellow corneas with white irises. Raising his hand, the figure aimed his palm at Illidan.

Seeing this, Illidan only continued on, but prepared to use his Shadow Powers just in case. Nearing the figure, a sphere of white energy formed within the figure's palm. Without warning, the sphere of white energy went flying towards Illidan. At the last moment, Illidan raised a barrier, which absorbed the blast.

"What do you want?" the figure hissed.

Slowly moving forward till only five feet separated the two, Illidan said "I've come to relieve you of your duties my old friend."

"I'm not your friend!" the figure venomously spat.

Seeing the hostility reflecting in the figure's eyes, Illidan sadly smiled, saying "Anubis has corrupted you."

"HE'S FREED ME!" the figure yelled back while white bolts of energy began coming off of his body.

"No, he's corrupted you and taken control of you." Illidan sadly replied.

Growling, the figure snapped back "He opened my eyes! He showed me that you've done nothing but manipulate me and control me for the last five millennia! My mind has been freed from your view, and I see that Anubis is correct. You are the evil, not him."

"I'm sorry you feel that way." Illidan replied in a small voice. Looking at the figure, he brokenheartedly said "I have never used you. You're my oldest friend. Please, don't let Anubis control you."

"More lies!" the figure snapped angrily.

Lowering his eyes, Illidan sadly said "I see. Then I have no choice."

Raising his eyes up once more, he said with great determination "I must duel you to set your spirit free! I challenge you to a duel for possession of your Egyptian God Card!"

Chuckling darkly, the figure said "I gladly accept your challenge, my former master. I, Dark Magician of Chaos, shall destroy you and offer your soul up to Anubis!"

"That's the Dark Magician of Chaos!" Jaden exclaimed to both Chazz and Alexis.

"Seems so. Man, he's in a bad mood." Chazz remarked.

Nodding, Alexis added "Yeah, and here I thought you was always in one."

Noise was heard and the three saw Illidan and the mage taking up dueling stances. Pulling his deck out, Illidan shuffled it and stuck it into it's slot on his Duel Disk. The mage held out his left arm, causing a strange looking Duel Disk, one that was similar to the previous guardian's, to appear. A deck formed within his right hand, and he jammed it into his Duel Disk.

Each Duel Disk expanded and came to life. Both drew five cards, saying at the same time "Duel!"


	61. Chapter 61: Darkness Within, Pt 1

**Hello again everyone! Well, it's a new week, meaning new things are going on… Well, not really, lol. Me and my mate went to see her mother last night, which was doing rather well. They're still unsure what happened exactly with her. They don't think she had a heart attack, but the tests aren't positively saying no to it either. At any rate, she was doing well last night. Today she's due to have a minor surgery ****to fix a few things around her heart that the doctors think could cause problems later on. Tomorrow she returns home when my mate goes to get her. Hmm, other than that, not much has happened this weekend.**

**Story wise, things are moving along. Me and ardee have begun pounding out some stuff, plus **_**Another **_**has begun to move again. Once I get a few more chapters (more like 8, lol), I'll probably begin posting it. As for when **_**Minutes to Midnight**_** will come out, I'm unsure. Right now, I'm thinking it won't immediately come out following the conclusion of **_**FG**_**, unfortunately, but we'll see. There is plenty of time to figure it out, so it's all good.**

**Last time, Illidan explained to Jaden, Alexis, and Chazz about Anubis. Now they have ventured to the abandoned dorm, or better known as the Anubis Dorm. Here, the final guardian, Dark Magician of Chaos, laid in wait for his challenger for his Egyptian God Card. Illidan has decided to take this fight on himself, putting the others out of danger. Can Illidan defeat his closest Duel Spirit, or has DMoC become far too strong thanks to Anubis for even Illidan to defeat him?**

**Ok, time once more for reviews!**

**pink-kiss-candy: Yeah, I was too, although they're unsure what it was. Lol, it's all so confusing. (/Points and laughs at Ryon.\) Don't make that guy mad. You might not like the results.**

**Nathan: Yep, another duel for Anubis, although the insanity issue is questionable I suppose. DMoC seems to have his mind about him, but it's heavily clouded by Anubis himself. True, it is a wonder how the villains always get the best cards, lol. Yes, Illidan beat Yugi and Kaiba, a few times I believe. It's in **_**ToP**_**, and I think I had the results of all the duels, but I'm unsure where now, lol. But yes, the gang knows how strong Illidan really is/was. True, Illidan hasn't been dueling too much in this fic for a while. That'll change, I'm sure, hehe. But the question is, can he have a repeat performance of **_**ToP**_** against Anubis? He barely beat the card the first time, so can he make it a second time around? Lol, yes, Metal Overlord's duel is quite interesting, and I like the deck name, hehe.**

**Knives91: LOL! Yes, nothing worse than a renegade guardian. Thanks for the comment.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Yep, poor DMoC. Lol, he could possibly be Mahado, but in just a darker light. Maybe he turned goth and painted his face blue, to reflect his mood. Nice musing, hehe. Thanks about the chapter, and the person behind Banner will be revealed.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thank you. Hmm, who could it have been behind Banner? That's such an important question. Yes, Illidan duels once more, at long last, lol. True, Zell has been missing. Could Legato have punished him?**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: True, dealing with DMoC who is brainwashed thanks to Anubis will be difficult. Yes, I think Marik is getting high off of the fumes… (/Marik: "I INHALED!"\) (/Sweat drops.\) Yeah… But yeah, Janempa is really odd and unusual. Thanks for the plot twist. I thought it would help things out. Hmm, who knows what DMoC will use, other than me, hehe. Thanks about the chapter.**

**x-knight20: Thank you. Yep, Anubis is making a comeback, and this time, I'm sure it's personal, lol.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed for this chapter. It was great to see all of the reviews, and I'm not too surprised everyone is curious to who is behind Banner, hehe. Just a little suspense to keep everyone guessing on who it is, lol. But thank you all again for your reviews. Till next time, enjoy the chapter!**

**Chapter 61**

Drawing his sixth card, the mage said "I'll go first. I summon Mystic Tomato (1400/1100)!"

An orange-red tomato with sharp fangs, a long tongue, crazy yellow corneas with red irises, and veins on the top of it's forehead appeared onto the field.

"I'll place this face down. Now my former master, let us see what you can do." (DMoC 8000, Illidan 8000)

"Gladly!" Illidan called out while drawing a card. Examining it, he slapped it to his Duel Disk, saying "I'll start things off by summoning Breaker the Magical Warrior (1600/1000)!"

A mage with mostly maroon armor and a cape, with gold trim and some blue jewels, appeared onto the field. He had a large mage's hat over his head, which covered blue skin. In his hands were a sword and shield, showing he wasn't just a mage, but was also a warrior.

"Since I just normal summoned Breaker, his effect goes off. He now gains a Spell Counter, granting him an additional 300 attack points (1600 + 300 1900/1000). But he's not going to keep his counter for long, because I'm activating his other special ability. By removing his counter, he can destroy one spell or trap on the field. Breaker, cut that face down card up!"

The warrior's shield suddenly began to glow. At the center of it, where a jewel was, light blue light formed brighter there. Aiming his shield at the face down card, the mage fired a blast of light blue energy, striking the face down card. It was revealed quickly as a trap card, which made the white armored mage growl softly.

"So, you had Sakuretsu Armor down? Too bad it's gone." Illidan calmly said.

Growling lightly, the mage replied "You'll pay for this. Besides, your mage just got weaker thanks to that trick (1900 – 300 1600/1000)."

Nodding, Illidan smartly remarked "Very true, but it was a small price to pay. Breaker, attack that tomato with Magical Sword Slash!"

Rushing forward, the maroon robed mage slashed the deranged tomato in half, causing juice to come pouring out before the creature shattered.

"Thank you my former master, for you just activated my monster's special ability! When destroyed in battle and sent to the Grave, I'm allowed to special summon a new Dark Attribute monster from my deck with 1500 or less attack points. I pick this, my second Mystic Tomato (1400/1100)!"

Appearing onto the field was a similar tomato creature like the one just destroyed.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan responded with "I knew that would happen, which is why I was prepared. I play the spell Magical Dimension! Thanks to this spell, I can sacrifice a monster on my field, so long as I have at least one Spellcaster type on it. Breaker, thank you for your help."

A golden statue held up by chains in four different directions appeared. The top half opened, sending out a beam of energy at the maroon mage. The mage vanished, and the beam returned to within the statue.

"Once I sacrifice a monster, I can special summon a new Spellcaster monster from my hand, so long as it has no special summoning requirements. I pick this, my Chaos Command Magician (2400/1900)!"

Opening once more, the statue shot out a new beam. Forming in front of the statue, a new mage, who was in mostly black robes with a little yellow trim. His facial skin was light blue, which was the only skin really shown. The rest of his body was wrapped up in the black robes, with a long black cape on his back and a large black hat on his head. In his hands was a short black staff that was lightly glowing yellow on the end.

"Oh yeah, one more thing. The last effect of Magical Dimension is to destroy one monster on the field, so I pick your Mystic Tomato!"

For the final time, the statue's doors opened, releasing a beam of energy at the plump tomato creature. It was struck hard, shattering instantly.

"Chaos Command Magician, direct attack him with Chaos Burst!"

Pointing his staff at the white mage, the black robed mage released a blast of yellow energy. The blast struck the mage hard, making him slide backwards a bit.

"I'll place a face down card and call it a turn." (DMoC 5400, Illidan 8000)

Picking up a new card, the white mage began chuckling darkly. Curious, Illidan asked "What's so funny?"

"You are! I expected that kind of a move from you, and nothing less. Already, you've managed to take control of this duel, but don't think it will last. I will make you suffer like I have. Now, prepare yourself!"

Pulling a card from his left hand with his right, he slapped a monster card to his Duel Disk, calling out "I summon Peten the Dark Clown (500/1200) to the field."

A clown with a white and black striped face, with yellow and blue-green baggy clothing, a blue vest with a white collar, a large red hat with a long pink flowing wig materialized onto the field.

"Next, I activate the spell Double Spell, which let's me discard one spell card from my hand, so I send Monster Reincarnation to the Grave. Now I'm allowed to activate a spell card from your Graveyard, so I choose your Magical Dimension! Say goodbye to Peten and hello to this, my Cosmo Queen (2900/2450)!"

A golden statue, the exact same one that had appeared the turn before, materialized onto the field and opened up it's top half, sucking in the clown. The statue lightly glowed and then shot out a new creature. This monster had a strange cylinder like hat that was gold and maroon with spikes on the ends of the cylinder. The creature's skin was light purple, and only her head and hands were exposed. On her shoulders was a green and gold set of shoulder pads. The rest of her robes were maroon.

"Ah yes, and thanks to Magical Dimension, I can destroy a monster on the field. I choose your pathetic Chaos Command Magician!"

Without warning, a beam came flying out of the open doors to the statue, striking the black robed mage, whose face was full of shock when he shattered. Illidan only growled in frustration at the loss of his monster.

"Poor Illidan, completely defenseless. I'll just have to hit you hard then! Cosmo Queen, show him your Cosmo Blast!" the white mage commanded.

Nodding to her master, the maroon robed mage held up both her hands in front of her body. A sphere of black energy formed instantly between her palms. Smirking evilly, the woman pushed the blast towards Illidan, who only braced himself for the oncoming attack. The blast hit hard, making Illidan cry out in pain and slide backwards, but he stood his ground. Finally, the blast subsided, leaving Illidan hunched over a bit and panting hard.

"My poor former master, you seem so tired. Why don't I end your pain soon so you can rest forever?! I place a face down card and end my move." (DMoC 5400, Illidan 5100)

"They seem so even in strategy." Alexis commented quietly to Jaden and Chazz.

"Yeah, I noticed. They're going at each other hard, but playing the same kind of strategy for the most part." Chazz remarked.

"Man, this is one sweet duel though!" Jaden happily exclaimed.

Looking at him with odd expressions, both Chazz and Alexis shook their heads. "Figures only Jaden would say something like that." Alexis muttered.

On the field, Illidan stood back up fully and let a small smile grace his lips. "You haven't lost your touch my old friend." he commented.

"I am not your friend, my former master." the white mage remarked with a tint of anger in his voice.

Drawing his card, Illidan said "I know that somewhere in there, you're still the same powerful mage that helped me all those years ago, and I will free you."

Glancing at his card, Illidan lightly smiled. "I think it's time to jog your memory, and what better a way than to bring out an old friend! I remove from play my Breaker the Magical Warrior and Chaos Command Magician, which are a Dark and Light Attribute set of monsters, in order to special summon Chaos Sorcerer (2300/2000)!"

Slowly materializing onto the field was a creature with purple skin, two large ivory white horns on the side of his head, and yellow eyes. On his chest were a few straps that crisscrossed his body. His shoulders were covered by a set of shoulder pads made up of leather. He had armbands that went from his elbow to his wrists that were black as well, and finally wore a pair of black leather pants and a battle skirt as well. Once fully on the field, the monster let out a small battle cry and took his place in front of Illidan.

"Dark Magician of Chaos, what has happened to you?" the purple skinned creature asked upon seeing the white mage.

Smirking, the white mage replied "Nothing, other than I've been freed from my former master. Why do you still follow that fool?"

Taken aback by the statement, the purple skinned mage retorted with "Have you forgotten all that we accomplished together with Master Illidan?"

"No, but I've learned how he used us. He didn't care about any of us." the white mage bitterly stated.

Shocked, the purple skin mage replied "You can't mean that! Master Illidan saved us, gave us purpose! If not for him, we'd still be trapped in the cave where we spent so much time alone. Would you have rather been stuck there!?"

"It would have been better than serving him."

"I don't understand, why are you so bitter? Master Illidan made us stronger, gave us purpose, and helped us each grow! Why turn your back on the person who helped us become who we are!?" the purple skin mage questioned with fury flashing in his eyes.

Lightly chuckling, the white mage simply replied "Because he used us as slaves. He made us this way, to where we had to depend upon him. When he left me here, I felt abandoned, and I was. Then Anubis explained it all to me, and now I know that I don't need that fool! I am no one's puppet anymore!"

"Anubis has corrupted you! Don't you hear what you're saying!? You were the closest to Master Illidan, so you know he would never do any of those things to us, especially you! Don't you see it!?"

"It's no use Chaos Sorcerer. He isn't listening." Illidan dejectedly said.

Looking back at Illidan, the purple skinned mage was about to argue, but Illidan interrupted him, saying "I know now that to free him, I must defeat Anubis. So, let's concentrate on that."

Sighing, the purple skinned monster nodded and turned back towards the white mage. Sneering, the white mage smartly said "That's right, be a good little slave and shut up."

"I'm no one's slave!" the purple skinned mage snapped.

"Enough! Dark Magician of Chaos, think what you want, but in your heart, I know you know that I never considered you all slaves, or ever used any of you like that. I only wanted each of you to be happy and to be strong. If it takes beating you to prove this to you, then so be it!" Illidan said with great determination.

Picking a card from his hand, he called out "I summon this, my Magician's Valkyrie (1600/1800)!"

A young female mage with long chestnut colored hair that reached her mid-back that wore a mostly light blue with some light purple like dress and an odd looking light blue mage's hat appeared onto the field. She held a scepter in her right hand that looked like a ram's horn on the end of a stick that had three green jewels on each side. The scepter itself was a light grey. Twirling around once, the mage gave a small wink at the white mage.

"Alright, time to go on the attack, but first I activate Chaos Sorcerer's special ability. By not having him attack this turn, I can remove a monster from play that's on the field, so I choose your Cosmo Queen!"

Raising his left arm above his head, and lowering his left to his stomach, the purple skinned mage sent power coursing into his palms. A black glow appeared in his left hand, while a white glow appeared in his left. Widening his golden eyes, he shot a beam of energy from each hand at the maroon mage, who let out a small scream as she faded away.

"Magician's Valkyrie, direct attack him with Misfit Scepter Blast!"

Twirling her staff, the young female mage finally pointed it at the white mage. A green sphere of energy formed quickly at the end of her staff. She quickly released the blast, sending it slamming into the white mage, who fell to one knee.

For a moment, his irises flickered from white to red. Looking up at Illidan, he rasped out "Help me…"

"Dark Magician of Chaos!" Illidan called out, truly concerned for the mage.

The momentary flicker faded soon enough, as the mage's irises returned to white. Standing back up, the mage yelled "I don't need your pity!"

Slightly shocked at the mood swing, Illidan pondered what had just happened. "_He seemed back to normal for a moment. Anubis must be having a tough time keeping control of him now that I'm here. That means somewhere, buried underneath of all that hate and anger, my friend still lives. I just have to keep reaching out for him._"

"I'll place this face down and turn things over to you." (DMoC 3800, Illidan 5100)

Looking on at the battle, Jaden's eyes were wide and full of excitement. "This duel totally rocks!"

"Leave it to the Slacker to say something like that about such a serious battle." Chazz remarked.

Lightly giggling at Chazz and Jaden, Alexis looked seriously at Illidan and said "This duel is intense. I hope Illidan can keep this up and win."

"Yeah, me too." Jaden added.

Back on the field, the white mage chuckled. "I see you are as strong as ever my former master."

"I won't give up till you're free." Illidan calmly said.

Picking up a card, the white mage nonchalantly replied "We'll see. I shall begin this turn by playing the spell Pot of Greed, meaning I get to draw two new cards."

Quickly drawing two cards, the mage grinned evilly. "Now then, I play the spell Different Dimension Capsule! With this, I can pick a card from my deck and remove it from play for two of my Standby Phases. Once those are over, the card becomes mine. And the wonderful card I shall pick will be…"

Pulling his deck out, the white mage began rummaging through it. Finally satisfied, the mage pulled out a card and said "This shall do. I'm sure you can guess what card it is already."

Lightly growling, Illidan murmured "Yeah, I can."

"_If he plays Anubis, this duel may end quickly. I have to keep stalling to keep it out of his hands._"

"Now then, it's time I move on. I activate the spell Mind Control, which allows me to take control of a monster of yours till the End Phase, although I can't attack with it or sacrifice it. Hmm, so who shall it be?"

Evilly smirking, the white mage pointed at the purple skinned mage, saying "My old friend, come to me!"

Struggling hard, the purple skinned mage was slowly dragged across the field. At long last, while still struggling, the mage was turned around to face Illidan, but threw a glare over his shoulder at the white mage.

"Harm our Master and you will be sorry." he bit out.

Laughing, the white mage responded with "Doubtful. Now then, I activate your special ability my good friend. Thanks to it, I can remove one monster on the field from play."

Tapping his chin with his right hand, the mage chuckled, asking "Who shall it be?"

After a moment, he finally said with surprise in his voice "I know! I'll just use your effect on you!"

Growing wide eyed, the purple skin mage said "You wouldn't!"

"I've made my choice. I use Chaos Sorcerer's effect to remove himself from play!"

"NOO!!!" Illidan screamed out.

"I command you to do it!" the white mage yelled.

Bowing his head, the purple skin mage raised his arms and placed his palms on his body. Closing his eyes, the mage began building power, causing his body to begin to fade away bit by bit.

Staring at his fading monster, Illidan sadly said "I'm so sorry."

"I don't fault you Master Illidan. Please, help save him. There is still good in him." the purple skinned mage said before he vanished completely.

Lowering his eyes, Illidan softly said "I promise, I will save him."

Looking up, Illidan boldly called out to the white mage, saying "I won't give up on you!"

"You are wasting your time mortal." the mage coldly replied. "I end my move." (DMoC 3800, Illidan 5100)

Picking up a card, Illidan examined it, but before he could say anything else, the white mage called out "I activate a trap card now! Go my Thunder of Ruler trap card! Thanks to this trap, you cannot enter your Battle Phase this turn, hence you are forced to end soon enough."

Lightly growling with frustration, Illidan said "That's just great. I switch my Magician's Valkyrie to defense and call it a turn." (DMoC 3800, Illidan 5100)

Drawing his next card, the white mage smirked evilly, saying "What a shame you couldn't fight me my former master. Now then, I place this face down. Only one more turn before your destruction!" (DMoC 3800, Illidan 5100)

"We'll see about that!" Illidan remarked while drawing a card. Looking at it, he prepared to say something, but the white mage interrupted.

"Not so fast! I play a trap, Threatening Roar! This little trap card keeps you from attacking me this turn, so you are finished!" the white mage yelled.

Growling with frustration, Illidan sighed and calmed himself. Lightly smirking, he said "Very well, even though I can't attack, that doesn't mean I'm finished. I play Pot of Greed, so I get two new cards!"

Grabbing two cards from the top of his deck, Illidan examined the cards and softly chuckled, saying "You may have me pinned right now, but watch this! I'm about to reverse the roles! I play Prohibition! Thanks to this spell card, I can call out one card's name. As long as this spell remains on the field, the name of the card I call out can't be played."

The white mage began to slightly sweat, saying "You wouldn't!"

"I would, and will! The card I declare for the effect for Prohibition is none other than your Egyptian God Card, Anubis, The God of Life and Death!"

"NOOOOO!!!!!" the white mage cried out in anger.

Smirking at this, Illidan calmly said "Looks like I'm not finished, now doesn't it? I end my turn with a face down card." (DMoC 3800, Illidan 5100)

The white mage slightly sneered and drew his new card. "Not bad my former master. I must say, you surprise me still."

"I'm sure I do." Illidan responded calmly.

Frowning, the white mage pointed at his field where a capsule that had been buried a few turns before rose up from the ground. "Don't forget, the effect of my Different Dimension Capsule activates now, so I return the card I removed from it a few turns before. Of course, you've figured me out already, hence I can't play this card."

"But of course." Illidan said with a smirk.

Lightly growling with frustration, the mage picked the other remaining card in his hand, saying "I place a monster in defense mode and end." (DMoC 3800, Illidan 5100)

Quickly drawing a card, Illidan called out "I summon Luster Dragon (1900/1600)!"

A sapphire dragon with strong powerful arms and legs, bone like wings, and ruby colored eyes appeared onto the field with a small roar.

"Next, I switch Magician's Valkyrie back into attack mode." Slowly rising, the young mage with chestnut colored mage took up a fighting stance.

"Luster Dragon, blast through his defenses with Ruby Blaster!"

Letting out a small roar, the dragon opened it's jaws as ruby energy filled came beaming out. With a simple spitting motion, the dragon released a sphere of ruby colored energy, which quickly went flying across the field. Once it neared the face down card image, the card image vanished and was replaced by an elder mage with orange like skin, grey hair that reached his shoulders, odd looking darker orange armor that formed some kind of hump on his back, a blue cape, and a green staff.

Chuckling, the white mage called out "Heh, you thought I'd allow you to attack me that easily!? You're wrong! You just attacked my Old Vindictive Magician (450/600), and his effect just went off! I can now destroy a monster on the field, so I'm taking your Magician's Valkyrie down!"

Opening his palm, the old mage released a red orb, which went sailing towards the young female mage. She was struck hard, making her cry out in pain. The orb instantly destroyed her, shattering her into millions of pieces. The old mage was soon destroyed by the ruby energy though, leaving no trace of monsters on the white mage's field.

Lightly growling at this, Illidan said "Very well then, I end my move." (DMoC 3800, Illidan 5100)


	62. Chapter 62: Darkness Within, Pt 2

**Hello again everyone! This week has been nice so far. Yesterday, my mate went and took her mom home, which is good. Her mom had surgery Monday, and she had no problems at all. My mate was happy that her mom was alright. The rest of yesterday was very enjoyable, especially when I got home. Let's just say, me and my mate feel much happier today, lol.**

**Story wise, **_**Another**_** has begun to pick up steam again, as well as **_**Minutes to Midnight**_**. Things are moving along with both, which is very nice to see. I will warn everyone now, **_**MtM**_** will more than likely not be posted immediately following the end of **_**FG**_**. I hate that, but in all honesty, I knew it wasn't possible probably. If it is posted, more than likely, it will be like only a chapter, maybe two, a week. We'll just have to see how far things are when **_**FG**_** end. It could be up to a month or two after this story ends, or it could begin immediately. Again, like I said, it just depends on how far me and ardee get along with it. So, don't lose hope, lol.**

**Last time, the duel between Illidan and DMoC began, with the two looking very even. In a last ditch effort to keep Anubis from being summoned, Illidan played Prohibition, making sure that Anubis can't be played. Now the two are locked in a battle for field supremacy. Will Illidan liberate his Duel Spirit, or will the power of Anubis make DMoC do something that he will regret?**

**Alright, moving along, time for reviews!**

**Nathan: True, DMoC isn't really insane in a deranged-lunatic sense, but he isn't in his right mind obviously. He appears to be controlled… Glad you like this duel thus far. The pair are evenly matched it seems. Yes, I've used the tactic of using Chaos Sorcerer's own effect to get rid of itself also. True, Illidan managed to keep Anubis away by using Prohibition. Lol, yes, Metal Overlord's card is rather interesting and weird. Thanks for the review!**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Nice review/duel, lol.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Thanks. I'm not sure why weekdays take so long and weekends go so fast either. I think the time-space continuum speeds up on weekends, thus making things go faster, but slows down on the weekdays. Thanks for the comments.**

**x-knight20: Thank you. Yes, DMoC is somewhere within his mind, but Anubis doesn't seem to want him out on his own. Thanks for the review!**

**pink-kiss-candy: LOL! Thanks for the flag waving. Eh, Ryon, need some help with that pike? (/Picks up pike and holds it over Ryon's heart.\) Like this, right? I'd do anything to help a friend. (/Evilly smiles at words.\)**

**Knives91: Thanks for the comments.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. True, I may have overdone it with Jaden this time around, but the boy does seem to like watching interesting duels and making comments like "Sweet duel!" Lol, but as I said, I may have overdone it a bit. Possibly DMoC might need to destroy Prohibition, but that will take time. Illidan just needs to hang on. Thanks for the review!**

**Well, that's it for today. Thank you all for your reviews. I really liked this round of them. To any and all who haven't reviewed, do feel free to make a review. I won't bite if you do… well, not hard anyways. (/Flashes fangs.\) Hmm, although, that last reviewer was rather tasty… Eh, I mean, I always like new reviewers! Lol, but seriously, if anyone that hasn't reviewed wants to, don't be shy about it. And to those that do review, thank you again. It helps so much with my writing when I see reviews.**

**Ok, I'm done for today. Thanks everyone again, and enjoy the chapter!**

**Chapter 62**

"I really thought Illidan would take a chunk out of his life points that time." Chazz commented.

"Me too. He was close, but that mage is too smart for that." Alexis added.

Staring at the duel, Jaden smiled, saying "Things sure are exciting though. I can't wait to see what else Illidan and this mage can do."

Both Alexis and Chazz sighed at this, with Alexis muttering "Men…" and Chazz mumbling "Idiot…"

On the field, the white mage drew a new card and slapped it face down onto his Duel Disk horizontally, saying "I set this monster and end my turn." (DMoC 3800, Illidan 5100)

Picking up a new card, Illidan studied the card for a moment before saying "I set this monster in defense. Luster Dragon, take out his defensive monster with Ruby Blaster!"

Letting out a light roar, the dragon opened up it's jaws and released a ruby colored fire ball, which struck the face down card quickly, but a dense fog appeared upon contact.

"What's going on?" Illidan asked with confusion evident.

Chuckling darkly, the white mage confidently responded with "Oh, you just ran into my monster. Show yourself now, Aqua Madoor (1200/2000)!"

A mage with blue hair, a white mask with only red eye holes, a yellow collar, and a green set of robes appeared onto the field. The mage had his white hands with long red finger nails held out, creating a wall of water to protect itself.

"Seems your little dragon bit off more than it could chew." the white mage said with a smirk.

Lightly growling, Illidan replied with "Very well, I shall end my turn for now." (DMoC 3800, Illidan 5000)

Drawing quickly, the white mage called out "I summon my second Peten the Dark Clown (500/1200) in defense."

A similar clown to the one that had been summoned earlier, with a white and black striped face, with yellow and blue-green baggy clothing, a blue vest with a white collar, a large red hat with a long pink flowing wig materialized onto the field.

"That should do for now." (DMoC 3800, Illidan 5000)

Picking up a new card, Illidan smiled, saying "It's time you met a new one of my monsters. Meet my new friend, Allure Queen LV3 (500/500)."

Slowly, on the field, a sparking began to materialize. From it, a woman with short brown hair, a black round hat, mischievous eyes, black gloves that reached up to her armpits, a silver and red sort of collar that attached to a long black dress with a maroon colored corset appeared. In her right gloved hand was a staff with a golden ring like object on the end, encrusted with jewels, and a single red jewel on the inside of the circle. Raising her right hand, the mischievous woman's left index finger caught fire. She only stared at it with the flames bouncing off of her eyes.

"As you can see, she's quite a looker, but there is more to her than that. Allure Queen, why don't you show Peten what I mean."

Smiling with a smug grin, the woman put the flame out on her left hand and took hold of her staff with both hands. Pointing it at the puzzled clown, the red jewel began to glow brightly. A bright red beam suddenly shot out of the staff, striking the clown, who cried out in pain, but then instantly vanished. The jewel soon glowed brightly and dimmed, but was still glowing nonetheless.

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO PETEN!?" the white mage roared in anger.

Smirking at the response, Illidan nonchalantly said "He's just fine. Allure Queen, why don't you display that little crystal?"

Holding it up, the woman projected an image from the crystal. From it, the sight of the clown was seen. He was trapped within the gem, banging his fists against the walls.

"Let him go!" the white mage snarled.

Waving him off, Illidan only casually said "No need to get snippy about it. He's just fine. You see, Allure Queen just turned him into an equip card to herself. He'll be perfectly fine. For now though, I end my turn." (DMoC 3800, Illidan 5000)

"Nice move Professor Illidan!" Jaden called out.

Illidan glanced over his shoulder and winked at the group with a small smile. Seeing this, the white mage fumed and angrily drew his card. Glancing at it, he jammed it roughly into his spell/trap card zone, saying "I play the spell The Dark Door, which allows us to only attack with one monster a turn. I end at that." (DMoC 3800, Illidan 5000)

"That so, well let me improve upon this situation!" Illidan called out while quickly drawing a card. Turning his attention to his female mage, he said "First of all, Allure Queen's special ability kicks in during my Standby Phase. You see, I'm allowed to send her to the Graveyard, along with the monster equipped to her, but at a bargain price. I get to special summon her next form, so farewell Allure Queen LV3 and hello Allure Queen LV5 (1000/1000)!"

Waving farewell to Illidan, the female mage began glowing white. Slowly, the white light vanished and a new version of the female mage appeared. She still wore the same dress and black gloves, but she had changed. Her hat grew in height, but shrank a bit in width. Also, her staff changed shape slightly, becoming more oval and a bit more reinforced, except at the top where it was still thinner. The crystal changed from red to green also. As well, two long straps with a golden ring at each end came off her back and flowed freely in the air. Her hair grew out a bit too, but was still only at the bottom of her neck in length. Opening her palm, flames began to fill it, making her smile with mischief.

Grinding his teeth at this new development, the white mage snapped out "That maybe so, but she triggered Peten's effect. When he goes to my Graveyard, I'm allowed to remove him from play and special summon a new Peten from my deck or hand, so I pick the last one in my deck. Rise up Peten the Dark Clown (500/1200) in defense!"

A new clown that looked exactly like the last two took up a defensive stance on the white mage's field.

"No matter." Illidan calmly said. With a smile, he nodded to the female mage, saying "Allure Queen, why don't we show Dark Magician of Chaos your new ability?"

Smiling mischievously, the female mage pulled her staff up to take aim at the field. "Thanks to her ability, she can take control of a level five or lower monster on the field, so take control of his Aqua Madoor."

Pointing her staff at the blue haired mage, the female mage released a burst of green energy from her green jewel. The blue haired mage cried out in shock when he was struck, but instantly vanished in a flash of green, ending the beam from the staff of the female mage.

The white mage growled loudly at this, but Illidan smirked, saying "Finders keepers. Now your little friend is an equip card to Allure Queen. Luster Dragon, why don't you introduce yourself to Peten. Nothing says hello like Ruby Blaster!"

Roaring with a happy nod, the dragon fired a blast of ruby energy at the weaker clown, who screamed out in pain. Within a moment, he was incinerated and shattered into millions of pieces.

"I believe that shall do it for now. Let's see what all you can do." (DMoC 3800, Illidan 5000)

Lightly growling, the white mage drew his new card. Examining it, he frowned and said "I'll summon my Witch of the Black Forest (1100/1200) in defense."

Materializing onto the field was a woman with long mid-back length purple hair, pale skin, and a set of black flowing robes.

"Your move." (DMoC 3800, Illidan 5000)

With a quick motion, Illidan drew a card and lightly smirked. "First of all, Allure Queen's special ability kicks in. During my Standby Phase, I get to send her to the Graveyard with your monster in order to summon her next level, so come on down Allure Queen LV7 (1500/1500)!"

Waving goodbye, the female mage glowed for a moment. Her clothing and body began soon began to change, most noticeably to start with her hair. It grew in length, soon reaching her butt. Next, the hat on her head shrank, becoming much smaller than it ever was, and had a golden pin through it. Her dress changed also, ridding itself of the strange silver collar, and losing some length. It now came up to her knees, had a slit on the left side, which revealed a black strip of fabric. On her hips, a golden belt like chain with a strange watch appeared, and a silver belt like chain appeared above the golden one. Around her neck, a golden necklace appeared that appeared to be a solid chunk of gold. The black gloves that ran up her arms vanished, and a new maroon colored piece of fabric ran up from her wrist to her elbow. On the bottom of the fabric, a piece of maroon fabric fell down about two feet with a bit of golden fabric on the end of it. The loops that had been freely hanging off to the side of her now connected to her arms, about halfway in between her elbow and shoulder. Finally, her staff transformed as well, becoming larger in size, and the jewel became a blue crystal. Looking up, the female mage smiled seductively.

"Unlike her previous forms, Allure Queen LV7 can absorb any level of a monster. Allure Queen, why don't you show him by starting out with his Witch of the Black Forest?"

Nodding with a sly smile, the female mage pointed her golden staff at the purple haired witch. The blue crystal began to glow brightly and without warning released a blue laser beam at the purple haired woman. She was struck immediately and vanished into thin air, but the crystal only continued to glow.

Growling with frustration, the white mage threw a hot glare at Illidan, who ignored it, saying "Luster Dragon, direct attack with Ruby Blaster!"

Roaring with acknowledgment, the sapphire dragon spat a blast of ruby energy straight at the white mage. The blast struck the mage hard, making him fall to one knee.

Glancing up at Illidan, his irises changed color once more from white to red. With desperation in his voice, he said "Help me."

"I'm trying old friend." Illidan replied with kindness and a sad smile.

The white mage shook his head violently upon hearing those words. Standing back, up, the mage revealed his eyes, showing that his irises were no longer red, but white once more. "Leave me alone!"

"I'll never leave you alone old friend. I promise you this, I will save you!" Illidan genuinely said.

"Just hurry up so I can crush you." the white mage muttered.

Sighing lightly, Illidan said "I end my turn." (DMoC 1900, Illidan 5000)

"You can do it Illidan!" Alexis called out, trying to lend him encouragement.

"Do it for Dark Magician of Chaos!" Jaden added in, hoping to help his friend.

"Just get it over with." Chazz muttered.

Chuckling, the white mage sharply asked "You fools think he can actually win? You're truly pathetic."

Picking up a card, he smirked evilly, saying "The end has come for you my former master. I play the spell Card of Demise, which allows me to draw till I hold five cards in my hand. Of course, in five turns, I must discard all cards within my hand, but I plan to win by then."

Grabbing four cards off the top of his deck, the white mage studied them momentarily before saying "Time to end this little game of hit and miss. I start by playing this, my spell card Heavy Storm! Say farewell to all of our spell and trap cards!"

"No, not that!" Illidan said with sweat slipping down his face.

"But yes that! Go, clear our fields!"

A series of twisters began forming on the field, each identical to the other. Each soon began to seek out spell and trap cards sitting on the field. One by one, the spell and trap cards on both Illidan and the white mage's fields were destroyed, leaving only Illidan's three monsters behind.

"Since I destroyed my Witch of the Black Forest, her effect kicks in. I can move one monster with 1500 or less defense points from my deck to my hand."

Pulling his deck out, the white mage scanned through it till he found the one card he was looking for. Taking it out of his deck, he showed it, saying "I pick this, my Giant Orc."

Shuffling his deck, the white mage placed it back within the deck slot. Grabbing a new card from his hand, he said "I play the spell Quick Summon, allowing me to summon this, my Giant Orc (2200/0) to the field!"

A large gray looking orc creature with a brown cloth acting like a pair of pants and a large bone club in his right hand materialized onto the field.

"It is time to introduce you to your end Illidan. This card has craved revenge on you since you left it behind. I summon the monster that is truly the only Egyptian God Card!"

The room darkened greatly, and thunder boomed down into the cavern from the top of the dorm. "RISE UP ALL MIGHTY ONE! COME FORTH ANUBIS, THE GOD OF LIFE AND DEATH (2000/2000)!!!" the white mage cried out while slapping the card to his Duel Disk, sending out white energy lightning.

Slowly, a sarcophagus with the dog head where the face should have been rose up from the ground and onto the field. The sarcophagus lid slowly crept open, revealing a mighty white aura spilling out from within it. The lid finally opened all the way and out stepped a man with a black dog head where a normal human head would sit. His muscles were tone, and he was dressed in ancient Egyptian garb. His eyes flashed white as his aura continued to flow out. Each and every monster on the field began trembling with fear, showing that this creature was truly the strongest.

"Man, it's just not possible." Chazz whispered.

Staring at the strong Egyptian God, Alexis shook her head slowly, saying "It's not possible.

"Hold on Illidan." Jaden murmured.

Laughing manically, the white mage pointed at Illidan, saying boldly "You are finished! Giant Orc, attack his pathetic Allure Queen with Bone Club Crusher!"

Leaping into the air, the large orc let out a battle cry and began falling quickly down towards the female mage, who stared in shock. Bringing his bone club forward, the orc prepared to crush the fragile mage, who raised her staff to defend herself. The staff instantly snapped when contact was finally made, and the petit mage only screamed in fear at the orc, who took no mercy and crushed her with the bone club, instantly destroying her. Using his momentum, the orc struck Illidan hard in the side with the club, making him fall to one knee.

Quickly standing, Illidan glared daggers at the white mage, saying "I won't let you suffer in the darkness anymore."

"You're too late! Anubis, I sacrifice Giant Orc to you, so increase your strength (2000 + 2200 4200/2000 + 0 2000)!"

Stretching his hand out, the powerful dog headed creature sent out a white pulse towards the grey skinned orc. The orc began glowing white instantly, and slowly, bit by bit, vanished. The powerful dog headed monster closed his eyes once the orc had vanished, only to reopen them immediately, causing it's aura to suddenly begin spilling out even more.

"Finish his pathetic dragon now with Judgment of Death!" the white mage commanded.

Turning his right hand straight at the sapphire dragon, the dog headed creature began building up power within the hand. Opening it's palm, the dog headed creature began forming a sphere of white energy. Finally, the sphere was the size of the dog headed god's hand. Taking aim, the dog headed god released the blast straight at the sapphire dragon, which stood frozen in it's tracks. The blast tore through the dragon even before it could utter out a cry, and instantly shattered into millions of pieces. The remainder of the blast went straight for Illidan, striking him hard, making him scream out in agony. Falling to his knees, he landed on his palms, panting hard, before finally falling to the ground, screaming out in more pain.

"It hurts, doesn't it my former master? This creature, which you once commanded, now seeks your own destruction. How ironic, is it not?" the white mage mused.

Smirking, he added "I end my move. Please, do try to continue. I wish to thoroughly destroy you." (DMoC 1900, Illidan 2000)

Staring at their teacher and friend laying on the ground was almost too much for the three students. Each stared wide eyed, afraid that Illidan was down for the count.

Finally breaking the silence, Jaden called out "Illidan, come on, you have to keep fighting! Remember what you're fighting for! It's not about just this monster's freedom, but about saving Syrus, Hasselberry, Marie, and everyone else that wacko Zell has hurt!"

The white mage flinched momentarily, placing his head within his right palm. He screamed out in pain, growling as if something was bothering him. Finally looking up at Jaden, the mage weakly asked "What happened to Marie?"

"You'll… find out… soon." a raspy voice called.

Everyone turned their attention immediately to Illidan, who was barely standing on his feet.

"Illidan…" Alexis mumbled with shock in her voice.

"_How can he stand after taking a shot like that?_" Chazz pondered silently.

Staring at the white mage with a fierce glare, Illidan slowly said "Once I save you, you'll know what is wrong with Marie."

The dog headed god threw a quick glare over his shoulder at the white mage, saying in a booming voice "He is trying to trick you."

Grabbing his head once more, the white mage screamed out in pain. Finally lowering his hand, the white mage sneered, saying "Nice try Illidan, but I won't fall for it."

"I will save you from Anubis's grasp old friend. I promise, and I never go back on my word." Illidan boldly stated. "I've yet to break a promise, and this is one I will fulfill!"


	63. Chapter 63: Darkness Within, Pt 3

**Why hello once again everyone. This week has been an interesting one to say the least. Wednesday, we got snow, which accumulated to about 2 inches, which wasn't too bad. The problem with it was it was slushy, and the temps took a nose dive, thus turning it to ice. Getting home Wednesday was interesting, but not too bad. I had little trouble, although my one coworker, well, he had an awful time. His car went over an embankment, but he wasn't hurt. He jumped ship right before it went down the hill. Since he lives near me, I've been giving him rides to and from work since he's a good guy and a friend. ****Anyways, his car wasn't hurt that badly. They pulled it out Wednesday night, and found it had only some body damage for the most part. When we went in Thursday morning, man, it sucked. The drive was treacherous due that the snow had packed and iced over, plus it was in the teens when I got up. Not to mention, my car's doors were frozen shut… I had to use hot water to open them, lol. Anyways, we made it to and from work with no problems at all. Other than that, nothing else has happened. I still have Christmas shopping to do… I got my dad and grandfather's gifts, and ordered my mate's birthday gift (a complete DVD box set of **_**Rurouni Kenshin**_**). I wish I had ordered her a box set of **_**Yu Yu Hakusho **_**instead, but eh, oh well. Oh yeah, did you all know her birthday is on the 17****th**** of this month? It's always fun when birthdays and holidays are close together, lol.**

**Story wise, me and ardee are still at it on writing up **_**Minutes to Midnight**_**, plus I've been working on **_**Another**_** a bit also. I'm finding it interesting to go between the two, because I constantly confuse Illidan's name with the character from **_**Another**_**. He has an 'I' on the beginning of his name, so I have accidentally called Illidan that character's name, but not vice versa, lol. Anyways, work is progressing on both, so no worries.**

**Last time, the duel between Illidan and DMoC raged on with Illidan losing his advantage and DMoC summoning Anubis. Illidan now faces the Egyptian God Card that nearly destroyed him in **_**ToP**_**, but unlike last time, he doesn't have the three Egyptian God Cards to help him, and he doesn't have all of his Chaos Monsters. Can Illidan prevail against the awesome force of Anubis, or will this truly be the end of him?**

**Time once again for the best part of the day! That's right, it's Review Time!**

**Nathan: Yeah, it's been a while since Anubis has been seen or heard of. Yep, Anubis is the only Egyptian God Card that requires no sacrifices and starts out with a base of 2000/2000 points, which isn't great, but isn't bad either. True, DMoC's deck is a bit random, seemingly put together from multiple cards, mostly consisting of Spellcasters. Yep, Illidan added Allure Queen to his deck. I'm sure Marie wasn't thrilled about him having such a racy looking card, lol. True, most of the newer LV cards are underpowered, and Allure Queen is one of them, but she is decent enough to work somewhat… Thanks about how I portrayed her. When I looked at the card's picture, I was like how the hell am I going to do this. Then I figured she took what she wanted, and that was that, lol. Yes, I almost chocked when I saw Kozaky's Sexy Kitty myself. Thanks for the review!**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Nice part of the duel. Lol, Kozaky's Sexy Kitty is very interesting, plus it has nice effects. Your duel writing is nice. Yes, Illidan is fighting for DMoC's freedom and sanity, not to mention to retrieve the Egyptian God Card himself. Things are going to continue to stay interesting, which I'm sure your story will too. Thanks for the review.**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Yep, Anubis has at long last arrived, meaning things will really get interesting now.**

**Knives91: Lol, yes, the butt kicking is beginning, but whose butt shall it be? Thanks for the review.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Nope, the duel didn't end. Can't without Anubis making his appearance, lol. Very good question, how will Illidan defeat Anubis once more? Yeah, you were right about Prohibition vanishing. Thanks about my mate's mom. She's still doing well. Thanks for the review.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Yes, friendship fluff, lol. Thanks about the characterization. Yes, I've seen Monty Python before. Very funny and interesting, lol. Thanks for the comments.**

**Well, that's all this time around. Thank you all for your reviews. I do truly appreciate them for the insight you all give me of my chapters. Plus, I look forward to seeing what kind of comments I get, hehe. Thank you all again for your continuous support and help. For now though, I'm out for the weekend, so enjoy!**

**Chapter 63**

Quickly drawing a card, he declared "It's time I started keeping that promise to you!"

Looking at the card, Illidan smirked, saying "I play this, my Double Spell! Now, like you did early on this duel, I'll send a spell card to my Graveyard in order to activate a spell from your Graveyard. The card I discard is this, my Polymerization, and the card I choose to use from your Graveyard is the card you played last turn! I activate Card of Demise, meaning I get to draw till I hold five cards in my hand, but in five turns, I have to send my entire hand to the Graveyard."

Picking up five cards, Illidan smiled. "I think it's time for a change of scenery."

Holding his Duel Disk up horizontally, he tapped the end of the Duel Disk, causing a slot to slide out. "Let's take this duel to a place that you maybe more comfortable with. I play the field spell Magician's Sanctuary!"

With gentleness, Illidan placed the card within the slot. It slid back in and the Duel Disk lightly glowed. Suddenly, the field began changing into what looked like an ancient library, with stacks upon stacks of books in the room. Many were in the shelves of the shelves of the library, but there were many more on the floor in large stacks.

Looking around, the white mage asked "What is this place?"

"A place where most mages are comfortable. It's a library, full of books on magic, but I'll explain it more momentarily." Illidan responded with a small smile. "For now though, I summon this, my Magical Scientist (300/300) in defense mode."

An older man with purple hair, a set of goggles, a white lab coat, and a yellow set of robes appeared onto the field in a defensive stance.

Bursting out loud laughing, the white mage pointed an accusing finger at Illidan, saying "You are truly foolish! You know that my monster will destroy that creature, so why bother! Now suffer the consequences! Since you summoned a monster, Anubis strikes it with a blast of 2000 points, pending the mode of the monster. Anubis, destroy that thing with Energy Drain!"

Opening his left palm towards the weaker mage, the powerful dog headed god began building power up within it's left palm. A sphere of white energy soon formed that was the size of his palm. Once fully completed, the dog headed god released the sphere, sending it flying towards the strange looking mage, who only looked on at the oncoming blast. The blast was very near when suddenly a tower of books shot out of the ground, taking the blast seemingly head on, causing a large explosion and causing smoke to fill the field.

"Not possible…" the white mage said with a gasp.

Glaring at Illidan, he yelled "Why is that thing still there!?"

"It's really simple." Illidan said with a chuckle. "My field spell, it protected my Magical Scientist. You see, this place, it's very special to Spellcaster Type monsters. During the turn they are summoned or special summoned, they're unaffected by spell, trap, or monster effects, meaning Anubis has no jurisdiction on any of my freshly summoned monsters."

"Impossible!" the white mage snapped.

"Very possible, thanks to an old friend at Industrial Illusions. He gave me this card, knowing it would be helpful if ever I had to face this Egyptian God Card once more. Plus, it's just a handy card all around." Illidan smugly said.

Smirking lightly, he added "Oh yeah, I forgot to mention something else about my field spell. It adds 500 additional attack points to my mages (300 + 500 800/300)."

The purple haired old mage smirked a bit while his body glowed a soft golden color.

"Too bad about Anubis being disabled by my field spell, but we should move on. I activate my mage's special ability, so by paying a 1000 life points, I can special summon a Fusion Type monster that is level six or lower for one turn. My choice of monster is this, my Dark Flare Knight (2200/800)!"

The older man got a gleam in his goggles as he began to glow. A purple glow slowly began forming on the field, and bit by bit, a warrior holding a flame orange sword dressed in black robes outlined with red materialized. In his left hand was a shield with flaming designs. His helmet was in the design of a dragon's scaly head, with flame red designs burned in along the black. The only skin to be seen was his face and hands, which were uncovered.

"Fool, summoning that creature has brought more pain upon you. Your little field spell may have protected your mage, but this monster is a Warrior Type, hence it is open season on him! Anubis, strike that creature with Energy Drain!" the white mage commanded.

Taking aim once more with his left hand, the dog headed god released a white sphere of energy straight at the black robed warrior. The blast hit the warrior hard, making him cry out in pain. Smoke filled the air upon impact. Slowly, it vanished, revealing that the warrior still lived. His shield was broken, his robes tattered, numerous cuts were on his body, and his sword was cracked. Still, the warrior stood tall.

Bowing his head, Illidan mumbled "I'm sorry Dark Flare Knight (2200 – 2000 200/800)."

Glancing over his shoulder, the black robed warrior only nodded slightly, as if saying for him to continue. Taking his warrior's words to heart, Illidan said "You may have weakened my Dark Flare Knight, but he's still got plenty of fight left! Prove it now Dark Flare Knight by attacking Anubis with Flare Slash!"

Rushing forward, the black robed warrior brought his sword up to prepare for an offensive strike to the dog headed god.

Seeing this, the white mage burst out loud laughing, saying "You are a true fool! Your warrior is far too weak, and you don't have the life points to weather this attack! Anubis, annihilate that pathetic creature and Illidan's life points with Judgment of Death!"

Raising his right hand only, the dog headed god built up power within his right hand, forming a white sphere of energy. The knight was only five feet away when the sphere was released, striking the knight hard in the gut. He never even got a chance to scream in pain, for the blast tore him into millions of pieces instantly. The remainder of the blast headed straight for Illidan and exploded seemingly on Illidan, causing a large cloud of smoke to appear.

"You lose Illidan! That was the most foolish move you could ever have made!" the white mage declared.

Staring at the cloud of smoke, the white mage gasped when the smoke vanished to reveal Illidan standing there perfectly calm and with all of his life points intact. "Why haven't you lost yet!?" the mage demanded.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan replied "Kind of easy really. My Dark Flare Knight protected me. You see, my warrior has a very unique special ability. Any damage I'd take when that card battles is reduced to zero automatically."

The white mage could only growl in frustration from this fact, but before he could say anything, Illidan continued, saying "Oh yeah, there is a second effect I should mention. When my warrior is destroyed due to battle and sent to the Graveyard, I get to special summon this new monster, my Mirage Knight (2800/2000)!"

Slapping the card to his Duel Disk, a golden armored knight with a blue cape, large golden shoulder pads, a golden helmet that covered all but his mouth, and a large sickle like weapon in hand materialized onto the field.

"Again, you foolishly fall into Anubis's effect Illidan! Use your Energy Drain now Anubis!" the white mage cried out.

Raising his left hand once more, the dog headed god released a white sphere of energy straight at the golden armored warrior. The blast struck the warrior, who was immediately surrounded by an explosion and smoke. The smoke slowly ebbed away, revealing the warrior still standing, but with badly scarred up armor.

"Pathetic, your warrior can't harm anything now (2800 – 2000 800/2000)." the white mage boasted.

Chuckling, Illidan slyly responded with "We'll see about that one. Mirage Knight, attack Anubis with Mirage Scythe Slash!"

Rushing forward, the golden armored warrior leapt into the air, it's scythe like sword poised to strike.

Darkly chuckling, the white mage smugly said "Foolish Illidan, your creature cannot win. Anubis, destroy that creature and eliminate Illidan's life points with Judgment of Death!"

Raising his right hand up, the dog headed god released a white sphere of energy straight for the golden armored warrior, who showed no fear whatsoever yet.

Seeing this, Illidan called out "I forgot to mention something about my warrior apparently. When he attacks, his attack points increase by the number the opposing monster has. Since Anubis has 4200 attack points, Mirage Knight's strength increases by the same amount (800 + 4200 5000/2000)!"

The golden armored warrior suddenly glowed with a golden aura, making his weakened body seemingly grow in strength. Using his scythe, the warrior slashed the white energy sphere in half and moved forward with a burst of speed.

"Not possible!" the white mage said with shock.

With a wide swing, the golden warrior slashed through the dog headed god cleanly, splitting it in half. In a thunderous explosion, the dog headed god vanished, leaving behind a nearly empty field.

"Way to go Illidan!" Jaden shouted with excitement.

"I knew he could do it." Alexis said with a large smile.

"Not bad." Chazz commented nonchalantly.

Loudly growling and grinding his teeth, the white mage seethed with anger, yelling "I'm not finished with you yet Illidan!"

Nodding, Illidan lightly smiled, saying "I know, that's why I still have some work to do this turn. I play the spell known as Instant Chaos! Thanks to this, I can remove from play a Light and Dark Attribute set of monsters from my field and special summon one monster with the word 'Chaos' or 'Envoy' in it's name from my deck or hand. Of course, I must equip this card to it, but that's alright. At any rate, I remove from play my Mirage Knight and Magical Scientist in order to special summon from my deck my Chaos Emperor Dragon – Envoy of the End (3000/2500)!"

Roaring onto the field was a massive black dragon with an orange mane, massive wings, powerful clawed hands and feet, and sharp teeth. Glaring at the white mage, the dragon let out another mighty roar, trying hard to reach the mage's subconscious.

"Why do you betray our Master for that Egyptian God!?" the dragon questioned the white mage.

Seemingly uninterested, the white mage replied nonchalantly "I woke up from my dream of slavery and realized I was a prisoner. I serve no one now."

"You could have fooled me! You serve that accursed Egyptian God now! Wake up and realize he's using you!" the black dragon angrily spat.

Lightly chuckling, the white mage simply responded with "I care not for your words. They do little to me."

"Easy Chaos Emperor Dragon." Illidan gently said. Staring at the white mage, he added "He'll wake up soon enough, but we have to work to free him."

The dragon sighed lightly, saying "Very well, but for his sake, I hope he realizes what he has done soon."

"As do I, as do I." Illidan softly said. Turning full attention back to the duel, he added "I place a card face down. That's all for now." (DMoC 1100, Illidan 1000)

Softly growling when drawing a card, the white mage glared at the card for a moment. Finally done, the mage called out "To start with, Anubis's effect kicks in. If destroyed, he resurrects the following turn, so rise up once again Anubis, The God of Life and Death (2000/2000)!"

The Graveyard Slot of the white mage's Duel Disk suddenly began to glow with a bright white glow. Slowly, the Egyptian God Card slid out of the slot, allowing the mage to pick the card up and slap it onto a monster slot. A white aura suddenly appeared, and bit by bit, the dog headed god returned to the field.

"Perfect…" Illidan mumbled to himself. Smirking, he said "It's time I end this duel! I activate Chaos Emperor Dragon's effect! By paying a 1000 life points, I can send all cards on the field, along with the ones in our hands, to the Graveyard. The cards are counted up, and the total is multiplied by 300. The total is then taken out of your life points, so it's over!"

Sneering, the white mage responded with "Not quite. You only have 1000 life points, meaning you lose automatically."

Lightly chuckling, Illidan said "Not true! I chain to Chaos Emperor Dragon's special ability with this, my spell card Emergency Provisions! Thanks to this, I can sacrifice a spell or trap card and gain a 1000 points. I'll send this, my Magician's Sanctuary, to the Graveyard, so chalk up 1000 extra life points for me!"

The strange library room suddenly began to vanish slowly, leaving all of the field open to the dark room once more.

"It's over! Finish this now Chaos Emperor Dragon with Infinite Blaster!" Illidan called out.

Roaring loudly, the large black dragon flew to the middle of the field and began glowing slightly with a bright light. Bit by bit, the dragon gathered energy within it's body, preparing silently to deliver the final blow to the dog headed god and his former friend.

Letting out a massive roar, the powerful dragon began to release his energy, but was interrupted before he could.

"I'm not done with you yet my former master!" the white mage declared. "I play the spell Mystik Wok, which allows me to sacrifice a monster from my field and add that monster's attack or defense points to my life points. I add Anubis's attack points, meaning I shall weather whatever you are throwing at me!"

Vanishing in an instant, the dog headed god's energy was immediately transferred to the white mage's life points, leaving the field nearly empty.

"NO!" Illidan growled out with frustration. Looking at his dragon, he mentally did the math and knew the answer already. "_I needed four cards to beat Dark Magician of Chaos since he had only 1100 life points, but now that he has 3100, there is no way Chaos Emperor Dragon's effect will wipe him out!_"

Within moments, the black dragon exploded, destroying Illidan's face down monster, which was revealed to be a young male mage with blonde hair that stood up somewhat, a red bandanna that was somewhat long in the back, purple body armor that covered the mage's body, other than his arms, and had a green staff. The explosion stirred up a tremendous amount of dust and dirt, blocking everyone's view of the field.

Once the smoke cleared, the field was seen empty with the white mage smirking. Lightly growling, Illidan said "Since Chaos Emperor Dragon's effect is over, the damage is calculated. I had three cards on the field, plus one in my hand, meaning four cards altogether for me. You had no cards, meaning the damage you take is four times 300, which is 1200 points of damage."

"A small price to pay." the white mage said with a triumphant smirk.

Lightly sighing, Illidan asked with annoyance "Are you done?"

"Since Anubis is no more, I suppose so, but rest assured, he shall return on your turn, as always. I end." (DMoC 1900, Illidan 1000)

"Professor Illidan…" Alexis murmured, unsure what to say or do.

Clenching his fist, Jaden called out "Come on Illidan, you can do this!"

"Just let it go Slacker. He's finished thanks to his last turn." Chazz muttered.

Glaring at Chazz, Jaden shook his head, defiantly saying "A duel isn't over till the last card is played! Professor Illidan has plenty left, so just you watch!"

"Yeah, watch him lose." Chazz darkly said.

"Come on Chazz, he needs our support!" Alexis admonished.

"Whatever. I'm just pointing out the obvious outcome of this duel." Chazz soundly said.

Growling in frustration, Jaden tore his eyes to the ground, feeling the fear that he knew he had felt since finding out Illidan was a relative. "_Like all of my family, he may lose..._"

Shaking his head, he tried hard to clear the thoughts. "_No, Illidan will win! He promised to save Marie and the others, and Illidan never breaks a promise! I just have to believe._"

Back on the field, Illidan stared at his deck. "_Can I win now? I thought that last attack would finish him and Anubis, but he managed to survive. What now? Is this really it?_"

Closing his eyes, Illidan continued to ponder. "_I… I don't know if I can win. Whatever I draw has to have more than 2000 attack or defense points, not to mention be capable of being summoned or special summoned to the field this turn. And whatever I summon will get blasted by Anubis. Is it possible I can win?_"

Without warning, an image of Marie flashed through Illidan's mind, making him open his eyes immediately. "_NO! I can't give up! I promised Marie I'd always be there to protect her! If I lose now, then I break that promise! The others, Marie, and the world, they're all counting on me to save them! I have to do it! I can't quit now!_"

Staring once more at his deck, Illidan silently mumbled in his mind "_It's now or never! Please Heart of the Cards, help me! Please be the card I need to win!_"

"You are finished Illidan. Just admit your defeat and surrender your soul." the white mage simply stated.

Tearing his eyes away from his deck, Illidan replied "Never! This duel isn't over yet! My move!"

Drawing a card quickly, Illidan brought it about to see it. Upon seeing the card, he began chuckling, saying "This is exactly what I needed to finish this."

"Maybe so, but don't forget, Anubis won't have that. He returns now to the field (2000/2000)." the white mage emotionlessly said.

Rising up onto the field once more, surrounded by the white aura, was the dog headed god who took his customary offensive stance.

"He won't make a difference." Illidan calmly said. Holding his Duel Disk up horizontally, he continued, saying "You see, I have a card that will help me bring Anubis down, not to mention free you."

Tapping the end of his Duel Disk, a slot shot out. Placing the card in it, Illidan said "It's time I play a field spell that will change the shape of this duel! I activate Chaos Control!"

Sliding shut, the slot locked back into place on the Duel Disk. The room suddenly began to change immediately. Dark clouds formed in the top of the room, with lightning streaking through them. Thunder could be heard, and the ground changed into a barren wasteland with only a cave in the distance.

Seeing the cave, the white mage's eyes went wide. Immediately, he grabbed his head and began screaming. He fell to one knee, still holding his head tightly. After a moment, he glanced up, mumbling "I know this place."


	64. Chapter 64: Darkness Within, Pt 4

**Hey everybody! Well, this weekend wasn't so bad. Friday, I saw my grandfather, who was doing pretty well. Apparently, he's been doing well in his home physical therapy, which is always a plus. Saturday, me and my mate headed out to the store and all, and did a little more of our Christmas shopping. I'm to the point now that I only have one very special person to buy for, well, that and my sister's boyfriend, lol. Otherwise, I'm pretty much done. Now I just have to send out my Christmas cards tomorrow… I had to fight with my computer and printer to print off some pics to send everyone, but last night at 2 A.M., and this morning when I got up for work, I finally got it done. I just need three addresses and I'll have everyone's ready to send, so happy day, lol.**

**Story wise, **_**Another**_** keeps rolling along, and so does **_**Minutes to Midnight**_**. Me and ardee talked out some more stuff on **_**MtM**_**, so it'll continue moving forward. Other than that, not much is new.**

**Last time, Illidan's duel with DMoC took a turn for the worse while he struggles to fight off Anubis. The Egyptian God continues to make things harder on him than ever, but the question is can Illidan hang on? And what is this new field spell, Chaos Control, that he played, and why has it affected DMoC so much?**

**Ok, time for the reviews!**

**Nathan: True, you would think he would have known about Dark Flare Knight and Mirage Knight, but then again, he's been away from Illidan for nearly eleven years, so he may have forgotten or didn't know. Yes, Illidan continues to destroy Anubis in spectacular ways, but the problem is as it was with Gozaburo, the Egyptian God nonstop returns the following turn. Yep, the original cards is something I tried on this story. I was trying to figure out how to keep Anubis at bay and realized something: there are not cards that can do it, so I figured why not make some of my own. Yes, Chaos Control will be nice once you see it. Heh, yes, Metal Overlord's duel continues to stay interesting. Thanks for the review!**

**pink-kiss-candy: LOL! Aren't you tired of waving that flag? Yes Ryon, this is a twisted religion. Perhaps you should hire me to get you out of it?**

**x-knight20: Thank you. You fought Chaos Control's effects!? No way! (/Checks to see if there was a story leak.\) NOOOO!!!**

**Knives91: Yes, me and my evil cliffhangers shall always rule the world! Or at least my imaginary one, lol. Thanks for the comments.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Very nice duel thus far. I rather like it. And Janemba keeps getting crazier and crazier effects. Thanks about the duel looking up. Yes, the new created cards seemed to work pretty well thus far. They are all original ideas of my own, so don't look for them to come out anytime, lol. Yes, this new field spell has quite a few unique abilities, hehe. I know, it's unusual to run to field spells in a deck, but then again, I realized that Jaden had like 3 or 4 in his. I mean, Skyscraper, Skyscraper 2, Neo Space, and Fusion Gate are all in the man's deck, yet he only uses 2 of them mostly (Skyscraper and Neo Space). Thanks for the comments!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Heh, I know, it seemed like the duel would end this time around, but no. This chapter it will, one way or another! Yeah, it was nice and cold last week, but hilariously, this week it's in the 60's… and it's to rain. But next week they're calling for snow, so yay! I kind of like snow, although I dislike driving in it. Lol, that sucks about having to do your Christmas shopping. I'm nearly done, other than my gifts for a certain half cat demon… Thanks for the review!**

**Isis the Sphinx: Thanks. Lol, yes, fun times when it snows. LOL! Eh, I wish I could say I wasn't fire crazy, but I play with my mate's lighters all the time. I set them up pretty high, till they're flamethrowers. She doesn't like that for some reason… Thanks for the review!**

**Alright, that's the reviews for right now. Thank you everyone for your reviews this time around. I really enjoyed seeing them. It's so much fun to always get a chance to see what everyone is thinking about the story. Thank you again for all of the reviews.**

**Ah yes, one bit of info to pass along that I just noticed Friday after I had posted. I noticed that word wise, this story has surpassed **_**TWS**_**, meaning this story is technically longer than it. Well, it is longer chapter wise also… oops, didn't mean to spill the beans, lol. Anyways, this story has a legitimate chance at having more words (meaning length really, just not chapter wise) than **_**ToP**_**. I know, I could actually do a comparison and find out which is longer, but I'm lazy. Half demons can be lazy too you know! Especially one's that are programmers…**

**Lol, anyways, thank you everyone for the continuous support. Till next time, enjoy the chapter!**

**Chapter 64**

"Yes, you do." Illidan encouragingly said. "It's the place where I found you and the others. This is the very place that you and the others dwelled in for centuries due that you all rejected everyone, but me."

"Help me." the white mage said in a pleading whisper. Without warning, the mage began screaming once more, throwing his head into his hands. His body began to glow with a white aura before finally he stood up, sneering.

"Nice try my former master, but you will not fool me so easily." the white mage boldly stated.

Sighing, Illidan responded with "It's not a trick. You'll be free soon. I promise."

Returning his full attention to the duel, Illidan said "Thanks to Chaos Control, I gain a rather unique effect. Once per a turn, I can special summon from my deck, hand, Graveyard, or removed from play pile one monster with the word 'Chaos' or 'Envoy' in it's name to the field, and neglect their summoning requirements. Of course, there is one draw back to this card, which is I'm not allowed to partake in my Draw Phase, but I won't need it to beat you."

Pausing for a moment, Illidan continued, saying "Alright, here goes! I activate Chaos Control, and I pick my deck."

Pulling his deck out, he began searching through till finally he found the card he wanted. Shuffling his deck, he jammed it back into his deck slot and slapped the card to his Duel Disk horizontally, calling out "I call forth my Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning (3000/2500) in defense!"

The storm over the field began to build up furiously, striking the ground randomly. Finally, a strong bolt of lightning struck right in front of Illidan. From the lightning, a figure appeared. Bit by bit, it was revealed to be a warrior with black ebony shiny armor with a mixture of gold trim, as well as a few blotches of red, mostly around his helmet. In his right hand was a powerful bronze colored sword, and in his left was a strong shield with black and gold coloring. On his shoulders were two golden backward sweeping spikes. His face had a light shade of green. The helmet that protected his head had three flowing spikes pointing behind him, and coming out from under it in the back was a braid of brown hair. Once fully on the field, he took a kneeling position with his shield protecting his body.

Laughing manically, the white mage pointed at the warrior, saying "Pathetic that you'd come to shield my former master! Anubis, show this fool what happens to those that protect Illidan!"

Raising his left hand, the dog headed god formed a white sphere within his hand and threw it straight at the black armored soldier. The blast struck the soldier, causing a loud explosion to fill the air and a cloud of smoke to appear. Slowly, the smoke vanished, revealing the soldier with a cracked shield and many scratches covering his armor. His own face had a few scratches with some blood slowly dripping from the wounds (3000/2500 – 2000 500).

"See, this is what happens when you protect one that doesn't care about you." the white mage gloated.

Staring at the white mage, the warrior shook his head, saying "No, you're wrong."

Looking into the mage's eyes fully, the warrior continued. "Why have you left our Master?"

"Simple. That fool tricked me, and is tricking you into following him. He uses us as slaves, yet says he doesn't." the white mage responded with a tint of anger.

Shaking his head, the warrior remarked "You are wrong. Master Illidan does not use us that way. I know why you think that though."

Slightly sighing, the warrior continued on, saying "Each of the four of us was charged with the duty of protecting an Egyptian God Card. Master Illidan did his best to protect us from everyone, but may have made one fatal mistake with the sealing. He left us alone with powerful cards, cards that have desires of their own."

Pausing for a moment, the warrior stood up, saying "Each of those cards, they had desires to be the ones in control of their own destinies. I know this due that I have spoken to the others. Each of us has agreed, the cards tested us, and tried to force their will upon our own. The three of us resisted though. True, it was tempting to obey and believe the Egyptian Gods, but we resisted due that we knew how dishonorable it would be to Master Illidan, not to mention we would be threatening the world with our own selfish desires."

Staring the mage down, the warrior added "I know that you took on the largest task of the four of us, but apparently, it was too much for you."

"You don't know what you talk about! Anubis freed me from Illidan!" the mage screamed.

Nodding, the warrior agreed, saying "True, but he only freed you from your duty from Illidan only to allow you to serve himself. Anubis wanted you to free yourself so you would obediently become his servant."

"It's not true!" the white mage snapped.

"No, it is true. Can you not see what Anubis has had you do? He has turned you against your friends, along with our Master. Illidan cares for you, more than you know." the warrior calmly said.

"You're lying!" the mage weakly said.

Sadly smiling, the warrior shook his head, saying "You know I'm right. A master that hates his slaves, or despises them, would not shed tears for them when leaving them. I know this because I saw our Master shedding tears when he left me to do my duty. It was harder on him than I think any of us knew."

Holding his head in his hands, the white mage screamed in pain, yelling "It hurts!"

"Please my friend, fight Anubis's control. Come back to me." Illidan said with raw emotion in his voice.

After a long few moments, the white mage glanced up with a menacing look, saying "I will not be tricked!"

Sighing, Illidan calmly said "Soon my friend, you'll be free. Just hang on. I end my move for now." (DMoC 1900, Illidan 1000)

Softly growling, the white mage drew, saying "My move, and your last turn!"

"Doubtful. Don't forget, Chaos Control activates! Thanks to it, I'm going to bring out another old friend, so Chaos Emperor Dragon – Envoy of the End (3000/2500), rise up to help defend me!" Illidan called out.

Lightning once again filled the field and soon struck a spot in front of Illidan. Slowly, from the lightning, the form of a large black dragon with an orange mane appeared. Stretching it's wings, the dragon roared loudly, attempting hard to strike fear into the field, but was taken aback by the dog headed god.

Grunting, the white mage said "He is nothing. Anubis, show that fool what happens when you stand with my former master. Strike him with Energy Blast!"

Stretching his left hand out, the dog headed god released a sphere of white energy at the black dragon, which roared in pain from the explosion that ensued. Slowly, the debris and smoke vanished, revealing the dragon still standing, but feeling the affects of the blast by slouching a good bit.

"Fool, that is what happens to those who stand against Anubis (3000/2500 – 2000 500). Anubis, destroy that pathetic soldier with Judgment of Death!"

Without hesitation, the dog headed god raised his right hand and instantly formed a sphere of white energy. With no motion, the blast was sent forward and crashed into the soldier with black armor. The warrior simply screamed out in pain, but was quickly silenced by the blast.

"I place this face down. Come now my former master, are you finished yet?" (DMoC 1900, Illidan 1000)

"Not yet." Illidan confidently said. "Due to the effect of Chaos Control, I can't draw, so I automatically move to my Standby Phase. Time for me to once again activate Chaos Control, so I choose to special summon my old friend, Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning (3000/2500) once more in defense mode!"

Lightning once again struck the field randomly, till finally a large bolt struck right in front of Illidan. From the bolt, the black armored soldier rematerialized in a defensive stance.

"Fool, have you yet to learn!? Anubis, weaken that creature!" the white mage called out.

Once more, the dog headed god released a white sphere from his left hand, causing a large explosion upon hitting the black armored warrior. When the smoke vanished, the warrior once again was covered in scarred up armor with minor cuts on his face.

"It's not over yet Dark Magician of Chaos." Illidan calmly said.

Smirking, the white mage sarcastically replied "You could have fooled me. This duel was over long ago, but you've yet to accept that."

Lightly smiling, Illidan responded with "We'll see. For now though, I activate Black Luster Soldier's special ability. Instead of attacking this turn, he can remove one monster from play, so farewell Anubis!"

Aiming his damaged shield at the dog headed god, the soldier released a beam of white energy. The beam struck the dog headed god easily, which only looked at the beam and cocked his head to the side. Letting out a loud yell, the soldier pushed a large pulse up the beam into the dog headed god, who vanished upon impact.

"It's time I end this! I switch my dragon to attack mode. Finish this now Chaos Emperor Dragon with Chaos Blaster!"

Roaring loudly, the black dragon spat out a black fireball of energy at the white mage, who only stood watching the blast coming head on.

Smirking, the white mage held out his hand, saying "Not so fast, my former master, I activate the trap Negate Attack!"

Appearing in front of the white mage was a black hole, which instantly sucked in the black fireball of energy. The sphere instantly vanished, and the black hole soon followed.

"Negate Attack completely negates your attack and ends your Battle Phase. Just admit it Illidan, it's over." the white mage boasted.

Shaking his head, Illidan simply said "No, it's not over yet. I end my move." (DMoC 1900, Illidan 1000)

Picking up a card, the white mage sneered, saying "This turn, it ends!"

"I agree." Illidan calmly replied.

Sneering, the white mage said "It begins with Anubis's mighty return (2000/2000)!"

A white glow filled the field, and slowly, the dog headed god rose up from the floor. Standing firmly on the field, his white aura began to flow off of his body in waves.

"True, Anubis returns first, but don't forget my Chaos Control! Thanks to it, I get to special summon this from my removed from play pile, my Chaos Sorcerer (2300/2000)!"

The field once more began filling with lightning, with multiple strikes hitting in random spots. Finally, it struck a large spot on Illidan's field. From the strike rose up the mage with purple skin and black leather armor.

"You never learn Illidan! Smash that mage with Energy Drain!" the white mage commanded.

Aiming his left hand at the purple skinned sorcerer, the dog headed god sent a white sphere of energy flying at the creature. The blast hit, causing a small explosion to fill the air. Once the smoke cleared, it was obvious that the purple skinned sorcerer was in great pain, for he was hunched over panting hard.

Glaring up at the white mage, the sorcerer said "You can destroy my body, but you will never destroy our Master's will!"

"Oh please, quit wasting your breath." the white mage arrogantly said. "Time to end this."

Interrupting, Illidan called out "Your right, it is! I activate Chaos Control's final effect! When I have three Chaos monsters on the field, by sending Chaos Control to the Graveyard, all monsters on your field are destroyed."

Lightning suddenly began to pour over the field, striking closer and closer towards the dog headed god, who calmly stood his ground. Soon enough, a strike hit him, sending a large surge of energy across the field. After a moment, the dog headed god exploded into millions of pieces.

"Not a problem, Anubis will return next turn." the white mage nonchalantly said.

Smirking, Illidan replied "Not quite. There won't be a next turn, because I'm ending this duel here and now!"

"How? You can't do anything now. Just admit it, you've lost." the white mage boasted.

"Wrong! Thanks to Chaos Control's last effect, once all of your monsters are destroyed, my monsters switch to attack mode. I'm then allowed to direct attack with all three, regardless of whose turn it is."

Fear suddenly crept into the white mage's eyes, as he yelled "NOT POSSIBLE!"

"It is. Check the card text if you want. In the mean time, Black Luster Soldier, switch into attack mode." Illidan called out.

Rising up, the black armored warrior swung his sword about, showing his readiness to fight.

Shaking his head rapidly, the white mage said in shock "It can't be! You can't win! Anubis told me I would win and rid you of my mind!"

"Sorry, but Anubis lied. Once I defeat you, you'll be free of his control, and free to make your own decisions once again." Illidan kindly said.

Hardening his expression, Illidan called out "Black Luster Soldier, finish this with Chaos Slash!"

Rushing forward with a mighty leap, the ebony armored warrior quickly crossed the field, blade raised. On his final approach, he took another leap into the air and began his descent with his sword pulled in for a slash. Finally falling to the ground, he slashed the white mage, who could do nothing but scream in pain and fall to the ground.

"It's over." Illidan firmly stated while the last of the white mage's life points drained, causing his Duel Disk to vanish. Illidan's Duel Disk soon powered down as well, but the three monsters that were on his field remained behind.

The trio of monsters stared at the white mage, who was on the ground panting heavily and holding his chest. Slowly, bit by bit, the white on his body began to fade into black. No longer did he have white battle armor, but black. His eyes changed as well, reverting from the ghastly white to a red color.

Looking up at the three, and then back at Illidan, the mage stood, saying "Anubis has left my mind."

Averting his eyes, he turned around, putting his back to the group. Seeing this, Illidan walked forward and placed a hand on the black armored mage's shoulder.

"It's alright. It's over my friend." he kindly said.

Shaking his head, the black armored mage replied "No, it's not alright."

Slowly, he turned to face Illidan, showing tears streaming down his face. "I failed you. I failed to stay loyal to you, and was tempted by Anubis to betray you. You should destroy me." he said with raw emotion.

Sadly smiling, Illidan shook his head, saying "No, I could never destroy you. You're one of the closest people to me, past and present. I knew Anubis would be hard for you to keep under your command, but I had hopes that you would find a way. None of that matters now though."

"But I …"

"But nothing. You have nothing to be sorry for." Illidan sternly said. Softening his expression, he smiled, saying "I'm just glad you're free and back to normal."

Lightly sighing, the blue skinned mage softly smiled, saying "I missed fighting along your side Master Illidan."

"And I've missed you as well. Now, come, I ask for your help once more."

Nodding, the mage replied "Of course. I shall help you till I draw no more breath."

Realizing he was holding something, the mage looked at his hand and then held out a card to Illidan, saying "Master, this belongs to you since you won. Please, take it up once more."

Taking the card, Illidan examined it and saw it was Anubis. "I take this card and promise to use it to help all those who have been harmed by it."

"Good to hear my Master. Tell me, what has happened to Marie?" the mage asked.

Sighing, Illidan replied "She was kidnapped by Zell, but I'm going to save her. We have everything we need now to free her from him."

"I see. I will help you to the best of my abilities in saving her Master. It is the least I can do for you saving me." the mage responded.

Smiling, Illidan pulled out a blank card, saying "I'm glad to hear that. Come, let us get started."

Nodding, the black armored mage began glowing. He soon vanished, but the card Illidan held out glowed in response. Jaden, Chazz, and Alexis looked at the card and saw that slowly, the image of the blue skinned mage reappeared.

"Welcome back old friend." Illidan mumbled while placing the card into his deck.

The three monsters that had been in front of Illidan all three nodded to him and vanished themselves, leaving only the group of four behind.

"So…" Jaden began.

Smiling, Illidan said with a smile "My monsters are all back."

"Awesome!" Jaden replied with a goofy smile.

"Now we have all four Egyptian God Cards also." Illidan added.

Chazz nodded, asking "That means we can go after that Zell guy now, right?"

"And save Professor Marie, and all of the others?" Alexis added.

Nodding, Illidan quickly responded with "Yep, that means we can do all of that. Soon, the others will all be back with us, and Marie will be free."

Looking towards the exit, Illidan smiled once more. "_Marie, it won't be long now. I'll make sure Zell pays for what he has done to you. I promise, I will save you, no matter what the cost. Soon my love, we will be together once more._"

Smiling, he said "Let's go."

"Right!" the three chimed in. Together, the four began exiting the dorm, hoping that what they had received within the dorm would help save all the people they cared about.


	65. Chapter 65: Betrayl, Pt 1

**Hey there everyone. Well, this week has become interesting, to say the least, lol. Monday, I left work early to go to my grandparents like always, only to receive a call at home from a coworker. He told me that ****myself, him, and our manager at the office were asked to go to the home office in Dayton, OH, for a Christmas party for the developers on Friday. We leave tomorrow, since it's 4 hours away. I agreed, so now I'll be gone Thursday and most of Friday. We get back on Friday evening, sometime or another. It should be a good time, hehe. I hate leaving my mate though… That's always the toughest part I suppose, even though it's only for one night. Eh, I just don't sleep as well without her more than anything. Having her wrapped up in my arms is always so good. At any rate, grandpa was good Monday, although he kept my grandmother up almost all of the night before. She said from 9 P.M. to 6 A.M., he did not sleep, lol. In response, she had me keep him up while she went to the store. I did, but still, he was exhausted. He wanted a nap when I first got there, so I let him have a 30 minute one. Anyways, the rest of the night went smoothly, with him staying awake till 7, at which time he completely passed out, lol. I may see him Friday, but it depends on how tired I am, and with me driving, I'll probably be exhausted, so I may just stop off and see him on Saturday for a while instead. We'll just have to see, lol.**

**By the way, sorry this is late. was down yesterday, so I couldn't post. My apologies.**

**Story wise, things are great! I managed to get more of **_**Another**_** wrote, and also did some work on **_**Minutes to Midnight**_**. Both are moving along nicely, which I'm glad of. Hopefully in the near future, I'll finish up with enough of **_**Another**_** to begin posting. I need a few more chapters, so anyone who is an Inuyasha fan, stay patient, please, lol.**

**Oh yeah, I did find a new anime that I like. It's called **_**Death Note**_**, and just began within the U.S. within the recent past. It's controversial from what I've read with some countries, with China highly not liking it, and Britain and the U.S. having problems with it, lol. But I really like this anime thus far. I had only seen parts of episodes on Adult Swim, but after watching a few episodes, I've realized I really like this anime. Things are exciting in it, and interesting to say the least. I'm looking forward to watching more of it.**

**Last time around, Illidan soundly defeated the fourth Egyptian God Card and his Duel Spirit and old friend, Dark Magician of Chaos, thus freeing him of Anubis's control once and for all. With the two reunited and the fourth Egyptian God Card in hand, Illidan and his group are ready to move forward in saving Marie and the others. The question is, can they win, and if they fail, what will happen?**

**Alright, time to get back to what I love doing. That's right, answering reviews!**

**Isis the Sphinx: Hmm, perhaps I'll do a cut scene to who was behind Banner… or maybe I won't, lol. Thanks for the chapter rating.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Yep, things worked out for Illidan in the end in his duel. Yep, maybe now that all four Egyptian God Cards are collected and Illidan has his Chaos monsters back, he might have a shot at saving Marie and fixing things. Lol, this duel keeps getting more and more interesting. I figured Giant Kozaky would come out eventually. LOL! Man, Marik must be getting desperate for cards if he had to pick up discount cards… Thanks for the review!**

**x-knight20: Thank you. Yeah, the final battle is coming. Heh, yeah, their fusion could use a face lift, lol.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Yes, the final battle is coming. Eh, Chaos Control maybe a bit too powerful, but the side effects do suck too. Remember, Illidan can't draw any cards, and has to use only his Chaos monsters. That means he has four monsters to pick from. Heh, it is strong, but at the same time weak. Just depends on how you view it I suppose. It's warm here now. The last three days, it's been in the 60's, but it's rained two out of three. We're supposed to get snow this weekend though… Ah, lovely West Virginia weather, crazy as can be, lol.**

**Knives91: Yes, the real battle is about to begin. LOL! Legato is actually just a spirit inhabiting Zell's body. Thanks for the review.**

**pink-kiss-candy: LOL! Isn't that flag getting heavy? It's a good idea Ryon due that I can keep you from dying, maybe…**

**Alright, that's it for me this time around. Thanks everyone for the reviews. I hope you all enjoy this chapter. I'll try and post the chapter like always Friday, so don't worry. Later all!**

**Chapter 65**

Walking out into the courtyard of the abandoned dorm, the group let out a sigh of relief, for all were glad to be out of the old building once more.

"That place is so creepy." Alexis muttered with a slight shiver.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan remarked "It should be safer in there now at least. Without Anubis controlling the Shadow Magic within the dorm, the building might be safe once more, although I wouldn't want to test that theory."

Looking ahead, Illidan saw a figure standing at the edge of the abandoned dorm grounds, seemingly waiting for them. Holding up a hand, he softly said "Wait here. I'll see who this is."

Moving forward to the figure, Illidan reached out with his Shadow Powers, trying to see who the stranger was. Upon sensing the stranger, he frowned.

"_I sense some Shadow Powers, but who on the island could have them? These are natural powers, seemingly modified by someone._"

Lightly growling, he knew the answer to who had done it. "_Zell no doubt brought this person's natural powers up to a new level, hoping they'd be strong enough to face me._"

Finally moving in front of the person, Illidan still couldn't make out who the figure was. All he saw was the person's black leather pants and part of his mid-body. "Who are you?" he asked cautiously.

A faint chuckle was heard, with the figure saying "It hasn't even been a week and you've already forgotten me."

Illidan instantly cringed at it, his thoughts wildly trying to figure out whom it was. "_That voice!? It can't be!_"

The figure moved forward out of the shadows, fully exposing himself. He wore a black leather coat with a black shirt underneath, and had a hard cold stare.

"Zane?" Illidan asked.

Smirking, Zane coldly said "You remember then. Good."

"Why are you out here? I figured you would be back at the dorm or the infirmary with Syrus."

With his cold emotionless voice, Zane replied "I'm here to take your Egyptian God Card, and your soul."

"What!?" Illidan asked with surprise in his voice.

Smirking, Zane coldly responded with "You heard me. Hand them over now Illidan, and I'll make it painless."

Taking a defensive stance, Illidan let out a low growl, asking "What did Zell do to you?"

"Nothing, although Legato did show me the truth."

"Which is what!? That you should serve him!?" Illidan demanded.

Lightly chuckling darkly, Zane shook his head, and coolly said "No, that you are the problem, not him."

Growling lowly once more, Illidan asked "How so? How have I proven to be the problem!? Is it due that I'm trying to stop Zell from destroying the world!? Or is it due that I'm concerned about the people I care about!?"

Coldly staring at Illidan, Zane responded with "Simply put, you allowed this to all happen. Syrus would still have his soul had you properly protected everyone."

"Zane, I did my best to save your brother, but you saw it yourself, there was nothing I could do against Zell!" Illidan fired back.

Glaring at Illidan, Zane emotionlessly said "That is debatable. You should have prevented this. Now I must rectify the situation."

Holding his arm up, his Duel Disk came to life. Upon doing this, a black swirl began to surround both Illidan and Zane in a dome shape, forming a barrier between the two and the outside world.

Seeing this happening, the others rushed to Illidan's aide, only to run into the barrier. Looking in the barrier, they saw that Zane was the one causing this.

"Zane, what are you doing!?" Alexis asked in a commanding voice.

Glaring at her, he responded with "Only what needs done."

"You can't do this! It's wrong Zane! Illidan is trying to help return Syrus!" Jaden argued.

Shaking his head, Zane shot a glare at the group, saying "You're all wrong. Illidan could have avoided all of this had he acted quicker, but now I will finish what he began. Once I finish with him, I'll be taking your Egyptian God Cards as well. Resist and you'll end up like Illidan."

"I won't be ending up like anything." Illidan growled out.

Turning his cold eyes back to Illidan, Zane lightly smirked, saying "So, you've decided to fight me, eh? Well, bring it on!"

Grabbing his deck out of it's holder, he shuffled quickly and jammed it into the Deck Slot on his Duel Disk. Instantly, the Duel Disk came to life and expanded.

"Let's do this." Illidan calmly said.

Drawing five cards together, the two said "Game on!"

Picking up a sixth card, Illidan said "I'll begin this little match. I start by summoning my Magician's Valkyrie (1600/1800) in defense."

A young female mage with long chestnut colored hair that reached her mid-back that wore a mostly light blue with some light purple like dress and an odd looking light blue mage's hat appeared onto the field. She held a scepter in her right hand that looked like a ram's horn on the end of a stick that had three green jewels on each side. The scepter itself was a light grey. Twirling around once, the mage gave a small wink before taking a one knee defensive position.

Lightly sneering, Zane asked "Is that all?"

"I'm just getting warmed up!" Illidan fired back while grabbing a card from his left hand. "I activate the spell Quick Summon, allowing me to summon another monster, so long as it's level four or lower. The one I pick is another Magician's Valkyrie (1600/1800), also in defense!"

Upon slapping the card to his Duel Disk, Illidan's field lit up as a twin image of the previous mage with chestnut colored hair took up a position beside of her twin sister.

"I'll end with a face down." (Illidan 8000, Zane 8000)

"This should be interesting." Chazz mumbled to Alexis.

Raising her eyebrows, she asked "Why is that?"

"The two dueled before, but Illidan ended up winning. That was before Illidan had his four Chaos monsters, and his Egyptian God Card. Zane could be in for a world of pain this time around." Chazz remarked.

"I don't know Chazz. It might not be that easy." Jaden chimed in.

Frowning, Chazz replied "Maybe."

Drawing his sixth card, Zane emotionlessly said "You should have just given the card and your soul Illidan. Now you'll just suffer through this duel."

"You don't frighten me Zane. I don't want to hurt you, but believe me, I will do what is necessary to save my students and wife, let alone the world!" Illidan retorted.

Smirking, Zane replied "We shall see. In the meantime, I play Graceful Charity! With this spell, I'm allowed to draw three new cards, but have to ditch two when I'm done."

Picking up three new cards, Zane examined them before selecting two. "I discard my Rare Metal Dragon and Infernal Dragon to the Graveyard. Next up, I special summon my Cyber Dragon (2100/1600)."

A metal snake like dragon quickly materialized onto the field and let out a mechanical roar.

"Typical Zane to play a Cyber Dragon." Chazz muttered.

"Well, they are his favorites." Jaden cheerfully said.

Smirking lightly, Zane continued, saying "Since that was a special summon, I can now summon this, my mighty Cyberdark Edge (800/800)."

Slowly materializing onto the field was a strange looking creature with long metallic wings that head sharp blade feathers. The metallic creature looked like a large bug with a long tail that had a pincher type tail, pinchers on it's mouth, and two stick like arms. The wings on the creature was massive, even larger than it's main body.

"Woah…" Jaden, Alexis, and Chazz each said in shock.

Staring at the creature, Illidan frowned. "_I've never seen that thing before. Possibly Zane has changed his deck?_"

"I see you're in complete shock, so allow me to shake you from it." Zane's voice said, bringing Illidan out of his thoughts. "Thanks to me summoning Cyberdark Edge, I can equip a Dragon Type monster from either of our Graveyards to it, so long as it's level four or below. The Dragon I choose to equip is my Rare Metal Dragon (2400/1200)."

A metallic dragon on four legs with sharp clawed hands and feet appeared onto the field. It's metallic body was coated with metallic spikes, along with a few small claws on it's elbows. Once fully on the field, the large metallic like bug moved in and wrapped it's arms around the dragon. Wires began running from the bug's body then to the dragon, seemingly plugging in, making the dragon cry out in pain.

"Why bother equipping the dragon?" Illidan asked, unsure what Zane was up to.

Smirking, Zane emotionlessly remarked "Due that my Cyberdark Edge now absorbs it's attack points, adding them to it's own (800 + 2400 3200/800)."

The metallic bug creature instantly began glowing upon Zane's statement with a dark aura. Upon doing this, the metallic dragon in it's clutches began squealing in pain and tried to squirm free, but was held firmly. Finally, the aura died down, and the dragon seemed to quiet.

"Why would you be so cruel to your own creatures!?" Illidan heatedly asked.

Sneering at Illidan's outburst, Zane calmly responded with "That dragon was of no use to me, so it deserves that kind of treatment."

Growling loudly, Illidan almost replied, but took a deep breath. Smirking, he looked up at Zane, saying "Doing that won't help you."

"Why is that Illidan?" Zane nonchalantly asked.

"You can't attack my monsters currently. You see, Magician's Valkyrie has a very special ability. So long as she's on the field, you can't attack any other Spellcaster Type monsters. Since I have two out, that means you can't attack either, due that they each draw the attacks away from one another. That means you're unable to attack me this turn." Illidan remarked.

With a light chuckle, Zane nodded, saying "True, I can't attack your mages, but I can attack you directly. I activate Cyberdark Edge's special ability, so by halving it's attack points, I can direct attack you (3200\2 1600/800). Cyberdark Edge, hit him with your Sonic Screech!"

Letting out a small roar, the metallic bug opened it's jaws, releasing a loud screeching sound wave that took physical appearance of a set of green waves. The waves easily evaded the chestnut hair colored mages and struck Illidan, making him scream out in a small amount of pain. Once the wave had ended, a large electrical jolt of purple sparks erupted around Illidan, making him scream out in pain and fall to one knee.

Panting hard, he asked "What was that?"

Chuckling darkly, Zane sneered, saying "I forgot to mention that in this Shadow Game, when you lose life points, you receive a jolt of electricity. It can be quite painful."

Lightly growling, Illidan stood back up, saying "Nothing I can't handle."

"Good, for I shall enjoy causing you great pain. I place a card face down to end my turn." (Illidan 6400, Zane 8000)

"That can't be Zane." Alexis said in a half whisper.

Jaden barely heard her words, and nodded his head, saying "You're right Alexis, that can't be Zane. The Zane we know would never disrespect his cards the way he just did."

"Zell must have brainwashed him or something." Chazz added while folding his arms over his chest.

"Hopefully Illidan can help him back to his normal self." Jaden mumbled.

Staring at Zane, Illidan pondered why the young man before him had changed. "_Zane would never disrespect his cards that way. Something horrible happened to him while I was busy with searching for the Egyptian God Cards. I think I can help him snap out of it, but I don't know for sure. Only one way to find out though._"

Drawing a card, Illidan smirked, saying "It's time I returned the favor for last turn, but first, I'd like to introduce you to an old friend of mine. I sacrifice both of my Magician's Valkyries to summon Dark Magician of Chaos (2800/2600)!"

Both female mages vanished in a flash of light, only to reveal a pentagon of flames. Slowly rising up from it was a mage with blue skin wearing black tight fitting armor, a strange mage's hat, and a long black staff. The mage had his eyes closed while rising up, but once fully on the field, he opened his eyes, revealing yellow corneas with red irises. Upon opening his eyes, the flames of the pentagon diminished immediately.

"Sweetness, Illidan summoned his favorite monster!" Jaden exclaimed.

Frowning, Chazz darkly muttered "Lot of good it will do him."

Staring at the mage emotionlessly, Zane asked "Am I supposed to be impressed?"

"You will be." Illidan countered. "When my mage is summoned, he automatically returns one of my spell cards from the Graveyard to my hand. I've only played one, so I pick Quick Summon."

At a snail's pace, the card slid out of the Graveyard Slot into Illidan's awaiting hand. Picking it up, he placed it within his left hand and picked another card. Moving his arm so that his Duel Disk was vertical, he smirked, saying "That move was only the beginning. I play a field spell known as Magician's Sanctuary!"

Tapping the end of his Duel Disk, a slot shot out. Placing the card in his right hand within the slot, the slot shut and the Duel Disk lightly glowed. The surrounding playing field suddenly began transforming into a large library, full of books on magic. Stacks upon stacks of books began to litter the floor as well, making it difficult to move around.

"Thanks to my field spell, all Spellcasters are immune to spell, trap, and monster effects on the turn they're summoned. Also, they gain a 500 attack point boost (2800 + 500 3300/2600)."

The black armored mage's body lightly glowed, showing his aura increased in power. Smiling at this, Illidan said "I'm far from done, for I play another spell! I activate Diffusion Wave-Motion, in which I pay a 1000 life points."

A red aura instantly surrounded Illidan, making him yelp in pain. Following the aura was a large discharge of electricity, making him cry out in pain even more.

Once regaining his composure, he continued on, saying "Thanks to this, my Dark Magician of Chaos can attack all of your monsters. Dark Magician of Chaos, show him how it's done by attacking his monsters with Chaos Slice!"

Raising his staff above his head, the mage let out a small yell. Two blades of pure black energy went slashing off in the direction of the two monsters. The first blade struck the machine dragon, slashing it completely in half and causing a loud explosion. The second blade struck the bug like creature head on, causing a loud explosion and lots of smoke to fill the air.

Smirking at his handiwork, Illidan gasped when from the smoke the bug like creature appeared to be unharmed. "Why is your creature still on the field!?"

"Kind of simple really. If Cyberdark Edge has a monster equipped to it, the equipped monster takes the hit instead of Cyberdark Edge (3200 – 2400 800/800)." Zane quipped.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan fired back with "That maybe so, but don't forget, my spell forces my mage to battle all monsters, so I can keep attacking! Go, tear that thing up with Chaos Slice!"

Sweeping his staff through the air, the blue skinned mage released another blade of pure black energy. The blade went hurtling straight for the bug creature, and easily slashed through it, causing it to explode into millions of pieces. Upon doing this, Zane was hit by a large amount of electricity, making him scream in pain and drop to one knee.

With smoke pouring off of his body, Zane stood and smirked, coolly asking "Is that it?"

"For now, yes, I end my turn." (Illidan 5600, Zane 4200)

Excitedly, Jaden said "He took the lead back!"

"Things are most definitely interesting so far." Chazz commented with his arms crossed.

Noticing Alexis's quietness, Jaden tapped her on the shoulder, asking "Are you ok?"

Nodding sadly in response, she replied "I just don't want to see either of those two get hurt."

Placing a calming hand on her shoulder, Jaden responded with "I know, but something happened to Zane. What, I'm not sure, but that isn't the same Zane we knew."

"I hope the old one returns." she mumbled in reply.

Sneering upon drawing his next card, Zane coolly said "You had your moment in the sun Illidan, but it's time I put you in your place. I summon Exploder Dragon (1000/0)."

A small black dragon with wings that had small hooks on the end of them, two powerful legs with clawed feet, a pair of strong arms with clawed hands, and a yellow underbelly materialized onto the field.

"Exploder Dragon, attack his pitiful mage with Bombardment Raid!"

Letting out a low growl, the dragon flapped it's wings, launching it into the air.

Raising an eyebrow, Illidan pondered what Zane was up to. "_His dragon is too weak to take on my mage. If anything, I bet it has a special ability._"

A loud roar drew Illidan's attention, breaking his thoughts. Seeing the incoming dragon, he called out "Dark Magician of Chaos, take that thing down!"

Nodding at his orders, the blue skinned mage held his staff up. Pointing it straight at the dragon, he released a black burst of energy at the dragon. The blast hit home, but the dragon continued on before colliding with the mage, causing an explosion.

"I'm sure you're curious how I just took your mage out." Zane coolly said.

"A little." Illidan replied calmly.

"Rather simple really. My dragon's special ability allows him to destroy any monster he battles. Of course, since he was weaker, he got destroyed as well. Also, thanks to his second effect, all Battle Damage is reduced to zero." Zane said.

Lightly sighing, Illidan mumbled "Figures."

"I'm far from done with you this turn though Illidan." Zane called out. "I reveal my trap, Call of the Haunted! Thanks to it, I can revive a monster in my Grave to the field, so I choose Cyberdark Edge (800/800)."

Rising up once more onto the field, the metallic bug creature let out a screech, making the group hold their hands over their ears.

"Thanks to his effect, I can once more equip a Dragon to him, so I choose my Rare Metal Dragon (2400/1200) once more (800 + 2400 3200/800)."

The metallic dragon with spiked skin rose up onto the field with a mighty roar. The metal bug soon surrounded the dragon and began attaching it's wires to the dragon's body. The dragon squealed in pain, but soon became silent.

"Great…" Illidan mumbled darkly.

Pointing at Illidan, Zane emotionlessly said "Cyberdark Edge, direct attack with Sonic Screech!"

Opening it's jaws, the metallic bug released a set of green sound waves straight for Illidan. Automatically, Illidan pulled his arms up in front of his body to block the oncoming shot. The sound waves hit Illidan hard, making him slide backwards, kicking up a dust trail as he moved. Once the blast lost it's momentum, he sank to one knee, panting heavily.

"Don't forget the penalty for losing life points Illidan." Zane reminded with an evil grin.

Electricity immediately flared around Illidan, zapping his body with high doses of voltage. Screaming in pain, Illidan fell to the ground, twitching badly.

Chuckling darkly, Zane nonchalantly said "I end with this face down." (Illidan 2400, Zane 4200)

"Illidan, come on, get up!" Jaden anxiously said.

Seeing Illidan not moving at all, Alexis glared at Zane, saying "Why are you doing this to him!?"

"He is the reason Syrus is gone." Zane plainly said.

"No he's not! Illidan did all he could do to save him! You were there! You watched! Why blame him!?" she yelled back.

Glaring at Alexis, Zane coldly replied "He is to blame. You don't understand Alexis, he allowed the darkness to come to this island. If not for Illidan, all of the students would be safe."

"We don't know that! Illidan has tried so hard to protect us all. Please, stop this duel before either of you get hurt!" she cried out.

Chuckling, Zane smirked, saying "You think he could actually hurt me? You're more pathetic than I ever thought you could be. And to think, I actually thought of you as a trusted friend."

A look of being crushed washed over Alexis's face. In a mere whisper, she said "But we're friends. I just don't want to see anyone get hurt."

"You should have thought of that before siding with Illidan." Zane sternly responded.

"Enough." Chazz gruffly said. "Just leave her alone."

Sneering, Zane remarked "Trying to be the hero Chazz? You're pitiful. Once I finish with Illidan, I'll give you all one opportunity to hand me your Egyptian God Cards. Fail to and you'll suffer Illidan's fate."

"I won't let you hurt them!" a voice cried out.

Looking back to see Illidan was sitting on one knee, he glared at Zane, saying "You won't harm them, ever!"

Lightly grunting, Zane smirked once more, saying "So, you have some fight left in you, eh? Good."


	66. Chapter 66: Betrayl, Pt 2

**Hello everybody! Well, I'm posting this chapter from the road this time around. I'm at the motel waiting to go to work this morning, so I figured since I had time I'd post my chapter. Hmm, Wednesday night was fun. We had our Christmas part at work, with the two owners, their wives, the vice president of the east coast division, and the secretary from the home office all coming down. We had a dinner, at which me and my mate sat with one of the owners and his wife. It was a good time really, and I learned that me and him had similar things in common. In the end, we got our Christmas bonuses, which were sweet, plus a gift. I got an iPod Nano, which I didn't get much time to play with unfortunately before I went to bed Wednesday. Oh well, I got time this weekend, perhaps. Thursday, me and a coworker traveled up to the home office, Dayton, OH, where we arrived at like noon. It's 4 hours from home, but not bad I suppose. We had a good time yesterday, and got some serious work and meetings done. Last night, two of the programmers invited us out to play **_**Call of Duty 4**_** at work. My coworker never returned my call when it was time to go, so I went alone. This was at like 10 when they called, and then 11 time I got the message due to me being sleepy, lol. Anyways, I went over (work is across the street here, ironically, lol) and we all three played from like 11:30 to 2 in the morning. Good grief, I'm tired, and realized it about 2 I was going to be dead tired today. Not to mention, I have to drive us home since my coworker can't drive stick shift, lol, but that's cool. Nothing an Amp energy drink, coupled with a Vault can't fix, hehe. I just need an IV running into me full of the stuff, lol.**

**Story wise, not much to report. I got a good bit done Wednesday afternoon on **_**MtM**_**, and some done on **_**Another**_**, but didn't touch either the last day or so.**

**Last time, Zane made an appearance finally, apparently under the control or brainwashed by Legato. He has challenged Illidan for his soul and Egyptian God Card, blaming him for the loss of Syrus. Can Illidan beat his friend and help him come to his senses, or will Illidan lose to his friend and lose his best chance at saving Marie?**

**Ok, time for reviews!**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Yep, Zane's Dark Cyber deck is out and about now. Heh, I wish I had some of the Cyberdark cards, lol. But yes, Zane's gone bad now.**

**Knives91: LOL! Run Zane, run! Thanks for the review.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Figures that Marik would take a liking to evil Zane, lol. Very nice piece to your duel, and Mutant Kozaky is very interesting. Yeah, I kind of liked Zane as Hell Kaiser than his usual unentertaining self. Thanks for the review.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks, and yeah, we gotta have Illidan duel someone that is deranged like the other three did, lol. Heh, I figured having Zane would surprise some people. You're correct about the Cyberdark's effect, it is level 3 or lower, but like the anime, I kept it at level 4 or lower. It's hard to find decent level 3 or lower dragons that I could use. Thanks for the review.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Yes, Chazz seems to have Kaiba's attitude, but Zane got the dueling skills and the little brother, lol. Thanks for the review.**

**Nathan: Thank you about Chaos Control. True, it don't seem like Illidan to limit himself to his Chaos monsters, but in a pinch, I'm sure they would be a welcomed group. Yep, DMoC is back under Illidan's team, meaning bad guys should beware, lol. Heh, yes, Metal Overlord's duel continues to be interesting.**

**Alright guys, I gotta run. Time for work and all. Enjoy the chapter and your weekend! Later!**

**Chapter 66**

Standing up slowly, Illidan glared at Zane and with all seriousness said "I will protect them with my life, no matter what, I won't let you harm them!"

"Then show me what you will do to stop me." Zane mockingly replied.

Drawing a card, Illidan glanced at it and slapped it to his Duel Disk vertically, saying "I'll do that and then some! I summon Breaker the Magical Warrior (1600/1000)!"

A maroon robed mage with a sword, shield, a strange mage's hat, a maroon cape, and maroon armor appeared onto the field. His body was completely covered, except for from his nose down to his chin, which showed blue skin.

"First of all, Breaker's effect kicks in, granting him a spell counter. For each Spell Counter he has, he gains 300 attack points (1600 + 300 1900/1000)."

The sword of the maroon robed mage began to lightly glow with golden energy, showing the strength of it had been boosted.

"Next, my field spell increases his strength even more (1900 + 500 2400/1000)! Time to activate Breaker's effect, so by removing his Spell Counter, I can destroy a spell or trap on the field. Breaker's target is none other than your Call of the Haunted!"

Raising his sword, the mage made a sweeping slash at the trap card. A golden energy wave fired from the sword and slashed through the trap card image, shattering it, causing the metallic bug like creature to roar loudly and shatter, along with the metal dragon attached to it.

"Even though Breaker lost a bit of his strength (2400 – 300 2100/1000), it was well worth it to get that tin can off the field. Breaker, direct attack Zane with Magical Sword Slash!"

Rushing forward with his cape flowing behind him, the mage pulled his sword up, preparing to strike. In an instant, he vanished, only to reappear behind Zane a moment later with his sword held out to his right. After a moment, three red slash marks appeared on Zane's body, making him slump forward a bit. The slash marks soon dissipated, revealing that Zane now had three slashes in his clothes, with a small bit of blood coming from the cuts.

"Don't forget the pain from your twisted game comes next." Illidan admonished.

Bolts of electricity immediately began sparking around Zane, making him cry out in pain. Once the bolts stopped, smoke began pouring off of Zane's body, with him staring at the ground. After a moment, he finally looked up with coldness in his eyes.

"That's all I have for you for now Zane. Let's see what you can do." (Illidan 2400, Zane 2100)

"Man, this duel is so close." Chazz calmly said.

"I know, it's such an excellent duel!" Jaden added with a smile.

Alexis remained silent, her face downcast. Seeing this, Jaden patted her back, soothingly saying "I wish there was another way also."

She sadly smiled at him, saying "I know. I just don't understand Zane."

"Sadness changes people." Jaden said with a tint of sadness within his voice.

Laughter immediately began filling the field, making all eyes turn to Zane. Staring at him with curious expressions, Chazz muttered "What is his problem?"

"Fool, do you think you can stop me with a single monster!?" Zane asked with an accusing finger pointed at Illidan. "You're wrong, because I've yet to serve you a fine defeat!"

Drawing a new card, he smirked evilly and said "I summon Cyberdark Horn (800/800)!"

Another metallic bug like creature with many sharp spiky wings, a series of spikes, four pronged spiked arms, a sharp tail, and a strange set of jaws with a three purple spots on it's head appeared with a primitive roar.

"Like Cyberdark Edge, my new creature is allowed to equip a Dragon Type monster to itself from either of our Graveyards, so long as it's level four or lower. I pick my Rare Metal Dragon (2400/1200)."

Like many times before, the metallic dragon with many metal spikes covering it's body appeared onto the field with a mighty roar. Reaching out with wires, the strange bug like creature grabbed hold of the dragon, making it roar in pain. The wires soon pulled the dragon into the creature's clutches, where it placed it's four pronged spiked arms around the dragon.

"Thanks to equipping my dragon, my creature is far stronger (800 + 2400 3200/800). Next, I play Quick Summon, so I can summon this, my Cyberdark Keel (800/800)."

Materializing onto the field was a black metallic snake like dragon with wires hanging off of it's body. It let out a small screech, showing it's readiness for battle.

"With my Cyberdark Keel's effect, I equip my Infernal Dragon (2000/0) to it, raising it's points (800 + 2000 2800/800)."

A tower of flames shot up from the ground without warning, and slowly from it, a dragon with black skin and a white under belly materialized onto the field. It had sharp clawed feet and hands, with a strong tail that had a sharp pitchfork like end, large blade like spikes sticking out from it's knees and backside, mighty wings with black on the outside and red on the inside, and an iguana like hood on it's face. Once letting out a roar, the dragon was suddenly struck by wires from the mechanical dragon behind it. The wires tightly wrapped around the black dragon, dragging it screeching to the mechanical dragon's body. Finally secured, the wires lit up around the dragon, making it roar out in pain and begin glowing black. The black aura soon traveled up to the mechanical dragon, which seemed to growl with appreciation.

"It's time I end this duel, once and for all. Cyberdark Keel, finish that mage off with Crushing Darkness!"

Roaring in response to it's master, the machine dragon opened it's jaws, releasing a beam of black energy straight at the maroon robed mage.

Seeing the oncoming blast, Illidan called out "Not this time Zane! I reveal my spell card, Magical Hats! With this, I can hide my mage under one of four Hat Tokens (0/0), so good luck trying to find him."

Four black top hats with a yellow question mark down the center of it and a small checkerboard pattern of white and red above the brim materialized onto the field, hiding the maroon mage. The four hats merged into one hat before spreading out once more into four.

Sneering at this, Zane remarked "That won't stop me for long Illidan. Cyberdark Keel, take out the hat on the far left!"

The beam that had been traveling across the field immediately hooked a hard left and straight into the far left hat, blowing it up into millions of pieces.

"Nothing there, eh? Well, too bad for you Illidan, because when Cyberdark Keel attacks a monster, or in this case, a token, you take 300 points of damage automatically to your life points."

Bolts of electricity instantly flared up around Illidan, striking his body, making him wince in pain.

"So, a choice of three hats now. It's a shame Illidan that you done this, due to my Cyberdark Horn's effect consists of Trample. If I guess the wrong hat, you lose, but if I guess the right, you survive a little longer."

Illidan lightly gasped, saying "No way, you can't be for real!?"

"I am, so let's see what happens." Zane said with a sneer. "Cyberdark Horn, pierce his pathetic far right hat with Horn Needle!"

The four pronged arms on the metallic bug like creature began to glow brightly as it pointed the four at the hat on the far right. In a flash, four needle like bolts of energy went sailing straight for the hat, piercing it easily. With the hat torn open, the maroon robed mage erupted from it, screaming in agony before exploding into millions of pieces along with the two remaining hats.

"And now, for your arrogance Illidan, you shall be punished."

Without warning, bolts of electricity immediately began striking Illidan, making him fall to one knee and begin panting heavily. Weakly, he stood back up, but was noticeably out of breath and becoming more and more exhausted.

"Pathetic Illidan." Zane coldly remarked. "You won't last much longer, much like your wife."

Instantly, Illidan perked up, demanding "What do you mean!? What has Zell done with Marie!?"

Sneering, Zane coldly said "You know she's far too weak to survive very much longer. Besides, Legato will make her his own when he finishes you off."

Growling loudly, Illidan angrily yelled "He won't do any such thing to her so long as I live! Tell me, what he has done to her!"

"Heh, it doesn't matter what he does with her to me." Zane nonchalantly said.

"She was your friend! You care, so quit lying!" Illidan growled out.

Closing his eyes, Zane lightly smirked, asking "If she cared so much, why didn't she help protect Syrus?"

Calming himself, Illidan sighed and replied quietly "Zane, we tried as hard as we could to protect him. Unfortunately, it just wasn't enough."

Opening his eyes immediately, Zane turned a deadly glare upon Illidan, yelling "You should have stopped Legato!"

"We couldn't. You saw what happened to me alone fighting him. If I could have stopped him, I would have." Illidan said with a twinge of sadness in his voice.

"You will never stop him Illidan." Zane bitterly said. "Even I couldn't stop him."

Seeing the darkness swirling in his eyes, Illidan asked "When did you try?"

"Last night, I tried to stop him." Zane bit out.

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Slowly trekking through the woods, Zane glanced around, looking for the person whom he was after. The past night or two, he had been out searching, hoping to find the person and bring them down.

"If I take him down, Syrus and the others will return. I just know it." Zane mumbled to himself.

A figure in the dark smirked at this and stepped out into the open, asking "Looking for me?"

Seeing the figure had blonde and blue streaked hair, golden eyes, and an evil smirk, Zane bristled up and hotly replied "Yes, I've been looking for you Zell!"

"The name is Legato. Zell holds my spirit within his body, but for now, I have decided to take matters into my own hand."

"Don't matter to me. Release my brother's soul, along with all the others, and Professor Marie!" Zane quickly demanded.

Sneering, Legato coyly asked "If I don't?"

"You'll regret it." Zane coldly growled out.

Smirking at this, Legato replied "Why don't we settle this in a duel? If you win, I shall set free your brother's soul, along with everyone else's, and free Mrs. Stormrage. But when I win, you shall listen to what I have to say. Sound fair?"

"Very." Zane said while preparing his Duel Disk.

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On the field, the three ancient creatures under Legato's control stared down an empty field and Zane. Drawing his card, Zane smirked at it. "Time I wrap this up and save my brother! I play the spell Power Bond. Thanks to this, I can create a Machine Type Fusion monster."

"Interesting Mr. Truesdale, but you require monsters for that." Legato calmly stated.

Smirking, Zane calmly replied "True, but I have another card. I play the spell Cybernetic Fusion Support, which allows me to pay half my life points in order to remove from play the monsters that create a Fusion monster instead. So, I remove all three of my Cyber Dragons (2100/1600) from my Graveyard in order to summon my Cyber End Dragon (4000/2800)!"

Three mechanical silver snake like dragon appeared onto the field, each letting out a small mechanical roar. The three soon began to glow with a blinding blue light, making it impossible to see the field. Once the light died down, a large three headed machine snake like dragon with massive wings on it's back let out a mighty roar.

"Thanks to Power Bond, my dragon gets twice as strong (4000 2 8000/2800), making it doubly hard for you to handle. But I'm not finished, for I activate my face down spell card too, my Limiter Removal! This card doubles my dragon's attack points yet again (8000 2 16000/2800)."

The mechanical dragon let out a massive roar while it's body began to glow with a white aura. With a mighty roar, the dragon stopped glowing and began to glare at the three creatures across the field.

"Cyber End Dragon, take his Raviel down with Super Strident Blaze!" Zane called out and pointed at the powerful blue creature.

Roaring in response, the three headed dragon opened each of it's jaws. Taking aim, each of the three heads released a burst of white energy, which twisted into one large white stream of energy.

Smirking at this, Legato coolly said "Very nice attack Zane, but you forgot one thing. I have a face down card. I activate the trap Karma Cut! By discarding this single card in my hand, I can remove from play one monster on the field, so I choose your dragon."

Zane's eyes widen in shock as his mechanical dragon suddenly vanished from the field, leaving him by himself. "No…" he mumbled as he hit his knees.

"Game over boy. You lose the last of your life points thanks to Power Bond's final effect, which deals you damage equal to your dragon's original attack points." Legato calmly said.

The last of Zane's life points drained away, causing a massive electrical shock to hit him. The two had been playing a Shadow Game with electrical shock as the punishment. Zane had taken a great deal of damage throughout the duel, but had managed to hang on. The last jolt sent him crashing to his knees and onto his hands, panting heavily.

"Now you shall listen to what I have to say." Legato smugly said.

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"What did he tell you?" Illidan asked curiously.

Smirking, Zane smugly replied "The truth about everything with you. I saw for the first time with clear eyes that the world is not as it seems, like you are not what you seem."

"Zane, Legato has tricked you into seeing his view on life. He wants to destroy the world!" Illidan argued.

"You're wrong." Zane calmly stated. "Legato wants to bring the world back under control, and the best way to do that is to use the Sacred Beasts to start over. Under Legato's watchful eye, the world could start anew."

"At a cost of everyone's lives!" Illidan angrily yelled.

Coolly smiling, Zane said "There will need to be some sacrifices along the way."

"He's talking about mass murder to those who don't find his way best! Zane, think about it! What if someone, say like Syrus, didn't follow his beliefs!?" Illidan questioned.

"Then they would be dealt with." Zane calmly stated.

Shaking his head, Illidan growled out "See, you'd destroy a person rather than let them be themselves! That's not saving the world or starting anew. That's called oppression!"

"Call it what you will, but it will happen. And as I said, Marie will be along side of Legato, helping return balance."

Growling loudly, Illidan snarled "Marie would rather die than force that upon people!"

"True, but this makes her weak, just like you. She was so pitiful looking last night as it was." Zane coldly said.

Shocked, Illidan said in a mere whisper "You saw Marie?"

"I saw that pathetic weakling last night, indeed."

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"Is that so?" Zane calmly remarked.

Legato had been talking to the cat that Zane had come to know as Pharaoh, but had found out during the past year or so that the cat could talk. He learned that apparently, the person talking within the cat was none other than the good Professor Banner.

Turning to face Zane, Pharaoh gasped at the sight of Zane in a black trench coat, which he had picked up from Legato once their talk had ended. Gasping, Banner muttered "_It can't be…_"

"But it is flea-bag." Zane gruffly said while grabbing the cat by the neck and picking it up.

"_What are you doing!? Get out of here before Legato hurts you!_"

"Legato would never harm me fur ball. I'm loyal to him." Zane coolly remarked.

"_Fool, he'll lead you to an early grave! Escape while it's still possible!_" Banner argued.

"I have no intentions on running."

Lightly chuckling, Legato interrupted and said "As you can see my former friend, Zane has pledged his undying allegiance to me."

"_What did you do to him!?_" Banner demanded.

"Nothing at all. We just had a little chat." Legato passively replied. "Well, that and I gave him something. A small portion of Zell's spirit, just enough to help in convincing him that I am right in my views on the world."

Letting out a small roar, Pharaoh tried swiping at Zane's hand that held his neck, but missed.

"Behave kitty, or I'll have to put you down, permanently." Zane coldly said.

Sighing in defeat, Pharaoh stopped struggling. Smirking triumphantly, Zane asked "What shall we do with him?"

"Bring him in the cave. He can stay with our other friend for now. Besides, I have something for you." Legato calmly explained.

Walking into the cave, the pair made their way to the back of the cave where Zane saw Marie bound to the wall. In a sarcastic tone, he said "Look what the cat dragged in."

Seeing Zane, Marie gasped and weakly asked "Zane, what are you doing here!?"

Lightly chuckling, Legato responded to her with "Zane has no reason to run my dearest Marie. Unlike you, he has seen that I am correct in my thinking. He has pledged to help me bring about a new peace."

"Zane, what he plans is genocide, not peace! Get away while you can still!" Marie yelled, hoping to get him to change his mind.

"Foolish Marie, you do no understand. Legato speaks the truth about the world, and what he has planned for it is the best. Once the world is healed, Syrus shall return, and peace shall come about." Zane evenly said.

Looking at him wide-eyed, Marie disbelievingly said "You can't mean that. Syrus wouldn't want to be saved like that!"

"It doesn't matter how he wants to be saved. I shall save him my own way since you and Illidan are failures at preventing this catastrophe."

Throwing Pharaoh to the floor, Zane glared at the cat, coldly said saying "Speaking of cats, stay here."

Pharaoh returned the cold glare, hissing a bit. Legato only smirked at this and walked to the frame of the cave opening. Waving his hand, a barrier formed. "That should keep you here for now." he coolly said before walking out.

Returning to the main part of the cave, Legato picked up a small box, saying "Zane, for your loyalty to me, I gift you with this. This deck was destined to be yours, but that foolish Chancellor of this school never gave it to you. Take this, the yin to the yang of your current deck."

Taking the deck, Zane glanced through it and smirked darkly. "This is the perfect deck to crush Illidan." Legato calmly said.

"I see. When shall I do it?" Zane calmly asked.

Slightly smirking once more, Legato replied "Tomorrow night. I want to see if that fool can do the impossible. If he does, take his Egyptian God Card and soul. Take the others Egyptian God Cards also. I don't care about their souls. Do what you will with them."

"Very well, I shall take back what Illidan stole from me." Zane coolly said before leaving the cave with an evil grin on his face.

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"How could you just leave her there Zane!?" Illidan demanded.

Sneering, Zane calmly replied "It was simple. I just left. She is nothing to me, just like you are nothing to me either."

"Zane, you can't mean that! Think about what you're saying!" Alexis pleaded.

Turning a cold glare to Alexis, Zane coldly said "I don't care about that wench. She, like you, mean nothing to me. None of you mean a thing to me anymore."

"Man, that's cold, even for Zane to say." Chazz calmly stated.

Smirking at Chazz's comment, Zane turned back to Illidan, saying "I shall end my turn now, so give me what you have left Illidan. Prove me wrong about you." (Illidan 1000, Zane 2100)

Confidently looking into Zane's eyes, Illidan drew his card, saying "I will fight with all I have to save my friends, my family, and all others that Zell has harmed! I swear to you now, I will pay any price to save them, even if I must lay down my own life!"

Glancing at his card, he lightly smirked, saying "It's time for a little game, although you may not find it amusing. I activate the spell Reversal Quiz. Here is how this works. I discard all cards in my hand, as well, send all cards on my field to my Graveyard."

The large library suddenly began to vanish, taking along the large stacks of books.

Looking around in slight confusion, Zane asked "Why do that? You just took any kind of advantage you had away."

"True, but I have a good reason." Illidan remarked. "You see, this card is an all or nothing card. The second effect of this card is I draw one card, but I have to guess the type of card it is. This is the kicker. If I guess wrong, nothing happens, but if I guess right, our life points switch."

"Big deal if they're life points switch. Zane still has more monsters than Illidan." Chazz gruffly stated.

Nodding, Jaden added "True, but I don't think that's what matters. If Illidan can draw the right card here, he'll make up for the loss of monsters."

Wryly calling out to Zane, Illidan smirked and asked "Worried Zane?"

"Not really. You'll never pull this off, and will lose." Zane calmly remarked.

"That so, eh?" Illidan cockily replied. Moving his hand to cover his next card, Illidan smirked once more, saying "Well, let's find out. I call this next card to be a monster!"

Drawing the card, Illidan examined it and smirked once more. Showing the card to Zane, Illidan triumphantly said "Looks like I was right, and what a monster it is. I drew my old friend, Chaos Emperor Dragon. That means your life points become my own, and my life points become yours."

"Sweet, now Professor Illidan has more life points!" Jaden exclaimed.

Shrugging, Chazz darkly muttered "Big deal. He's still outgunned."

"I don't know Chazz. Don't forget, he just drew one of his favorite monsters." Alexis chimed in.

"Wait, you're right!" Chazz replied with shock in his voice. "It's over for Zane now!"

"It's time I end this Zane!" Illidan calmly said. "I first remove from play my Breaker the Magical Warrior and Magician's Valkyrie in order to special summon this, my old friend, Chaos Emperor Dragon – Envoy of the End (3000/2500)!"

Slapping the card to his Duel Disk, Illidan watched proudly as a large black dragon with an orange mane, massive wings, and powerful clawed hands and feet roared onto the field. Glaring at Zane, the dragon let out another roar, trying hard to instill some fear into him, but seemingly failing at it.

"Chaos Emperor Dragon, why don't you show Zane what you've got! Attack his Cyberdark Keel with Chaos Blaster!"

Roaring loudly, the black dragon opened it's jaws and spat a black fire ball at the machine dragon. The blast scored a direct hit, making the machine dragon howl in pain, but instead of exploding, the dragon attached to it's body exploded, leaving the machine dragon weaker than before (2800 – 2000 800/800).

"And thanks to your insidious game, you take a jolt!" Illidan added.

Electricity began to flare up around Zane before finally zapping him hard, making him wince in pain before the burst of energy stopped.

Glaring at Illidan, Zane calmly asked "Is that all you got?"

"Not at all." Illidan smugly replied. "I activate Chaos Emperor Dragon's special effect, which forces me to pay 1000 life points."

Upon giving up his life points, Illidan grimaced in pain as electricity began striking his body. With it dying down, he summoned up more of his strength, standing up tall.

"Now my dragon can send all cards on our fields and in our hands to the Graveyard. Once this is done, the cards sent are counted up, with the total being multiplied by 300. That is the total number of life points you'll lose! The game is over Zane, so farewell. Chaos Emperor Dragon, finish it with Infinite Blaster!"

Roaring loudly, the orange mane dragon flew to the center of the field and began building up energy. Bit by bit, the dragon began to glow a light white glow.

Sneering at this, Zane held his hand out towards his face down card, saying "The only thing finished right now is you Illidan. I reveal my trap, Fusion Guard. By randomly discarding a Fusion Type monster, I can negate any damage I'd receive from a card's effect."

Several card images appeared in front of Zane, who touched one of them. The card was immediately revealed to be Cyber End Dragon.

"Oh well, that card was useless. Now I'll take no damage, meaning you just wasted your dragon for nothing!" Zane smugly stated.

"No!" Illidan growled out.

Without warning, the black dragon exploded at long last after gathering enough energy, clearing the field of the metallic bug like creature and machine dragon.

Sighing, Illidan simply said "I end my turn." (Illidan 1100, Zane 800)


	67. Chapter 67: Betrayl, Pt 3

**Hey everyone. Well, this weekend was pretty cool. I got back Friday without a scratch, even though I had little sleep, lol. But anyways, I made it back, safe and sound, so all good. I went Christmas shopping Saturday and picked up my mate's gifts. I think I did pretty good on my selections. Also, on the way home, I stopped to see my grandfather. He was sleepy, like majorly sleepy, lol, but at least I did see him I suppose. I'm due to go back today also. Anyways, yesterday, it snowed once more, with insane speed winds also. To me, it was alright, but my mate hates the wind and the cold. She's a house cat demon I suppose, hehe. (/Gets smacked in the head from behind.\) I mean she's a lovely mate who just hates the cold. (/Patted on head.\) Ah yes, and today was a great start. I overslept a bit for work, lol. I made it an hour and a half late, only to find most of my coworkers were out. Two are sick, one had an eye appointment, and the other was snowed in at Pennsylvania. Joy…**

**Oh yeah, big note here. Today is my mate's birthday! I got her a few gifts, but didn't give them to her yet. Heh, I'm going to give them to her either this afternoon or tonight. I think more than likely tonight, due that I came in late for work and need to leave early. Oh well, lol.**

**Writing wise, things are moving along. That's all I'll say since I haven't had too much time to write recently.**

**Last time, Illidan and Zane's duel moved on, with Zane revealing that Legato beat him in a duel and now he works for him. He also revealed that he saw Marie and Pharaoh (Banner), but did nothing about it. Fueled by the rage of knowing Zane has betrayed everyone, Illidan fights on, hoping to defeat him. Still, will it be enough to beat Zane's new Underworld deck, or will Zane be the one to put Illidan down for good?**

**Alright, time once again for the best time! That's right, it's review time!**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Wow, that duel sure is heating up! Excellent job thus far on it. Thanks about my chapter. Yeah, poor Zane didn't stand a chance against Legato, but now we know what went wrong. Thanks for the happy holidays thing, and I wish you a Merry Christmas as well!**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Yep, he Zane left Marie with Banner and has gone to the dark side, lol. LOL! (/Pokes you in chest, making you fall over backward.\) Maybe a few less weapons there… Thanks for the review.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Yep, it was Zane, lol. Thank you for the review.**

**Knives91: LOL! Good luck with the tank. Thanks for the review.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thank you. Hmm, he might not be able to do anything next turn. Never know. Yes, I made Reversal Quiz kind of a surprise card for him. True, he never does seem to get CED's effect to work quite right anymore, but it happens. Yeah, only Masked Dragon and Twin Headed Behemoth were decent level 3 dragons, but that's due to their effects. Still, like I said, there are really no helpful dragons that are level 3, so I chose to follow the show's example and cheated with level 4, lol. Thanks for the review.**

**Nathan: Lol, yeah, Zane was bad in the show, but I gave him an extra dose of bad for my story. Very true, it's good that Syrus don't see Zane like this. Glad you like the duel thus far. Yeah, no one thinks about Magical Hats ever having any kind of bad effect, but if someone has a Trample monster out, watch out for the damage, hehe. Lol, yeah, it was good for once that someone guessed which hat was which. Yes, I used creativity on the Cyberdark monsters, but only what the show used, lol. At least this effect gave Zane a bit more bang for his buck with his creatures. Yes, Metal Overlord's duel is insane and excellent. Thanks for the review.**

**Ok everyone, I'm done for now. I hope everyone enjoys this chapter. Thank you all for the reviews btw. I'm glad the story is still liked. For now, take care and enjoy!**

**Chapter 67**

"This isn't good." Chazz darkly muttered.

Nodding in response, Alexis replied "Tell me about it. Both only have a few life points left, but more than that, they're both wide open."

"Yeah, this is the danger zone for Illidan. If Zane draws a monster, it's over for Illidan." Jaden nervously added. "All we can do now is hope for Illidan's victory."

Staring at Zane, sweat slipped down Illidan's brow. Standing there, he pondered would happen now. "_I'm wide open. Zane can eliminate me this turn if he draws a monster. Of course, that requires him drawing a monster. If he fails, it maybe up to me to finish this duel. I just have to trust in fate that I'll survive. I can't fail now, no matter what!_"

Sneering at Illidan, Zane coolly asked "Worried Illidan?"

"Maybe just a little." Illidan calmly replied.

Picking up a card at the same time, Zane remarked "You should be."

Examining his card, Zane lightly smirked, saying "I play Pot of Greed. This spell let's me draw two more cards."

"_Great, that makes his chances even better._" Illidan silently groaned in his mind.

"I place two cards face down, and end my turn." (Illidan 1100, Zane 800)

Letting out a sigh of relief, Illidan drew his own card and frowned. "I place a face down card, and that's it for me too." (Illidan 1100, Zane 800)

"Man, both didn't draw a monster. How ironic." Chazz pointed out.

Lightly chuckling, Jaden nodded, saying "It sure is. What does ironic mean anyways?"

"You're hopeless Jaden." Alexis said with a heavy sigh.

Drawing a card calmly, Zane simply said "I pass." (Illidan 1100, Zane 800)

"Too bad for you!" Illidan said upon drawing his next card. Looking it over, he called out "I activate Graceful Charity, meaning I can draw three cards now. Of course, I have to discard two, but that's the breaks."

Picking up three cards, Illidan examined them before saying "I discard Silent Magician LV8 and Rapid-Fire Magician. Next, I activate a handy spell known as Level Modulation. First, you get to draw two cards, so go ahead."

Calmly drawing two cards, Zane placed them within his hand silently. Once he finished, Illidan continued, saying "I next get to bring back one LV monster, and my pick is this, my Silent Magician LV8 (3500/1000)!"

A white light began to fill the field, which revealed a figure within. Slowly, the light dimmed, revealing a tall mage in white robes with white gloves, blue boots, an odd white hat with a little blue on an ornament, blue spandex like material covering it's arms, and a small scepter. His long silver hair hung down low and was unbound.

"Unfortunately, my mage can't attack this turn, but next turn he'll be all over you. (Illidan 1100, Zane 800)

Calmly drawing, Zane let out a small chuckle, saying "There won't be a next turn for you Illidan! I first activate the spell Pot of Avarice, which lets me transfer five monsters from my Grave to my deck. The five I choose are Cyberdark Edge, Cyberdark Horn, Cyberdark Keel, Infernal Dragon, and Exploder Dragon."

One by one, the five monster cards slid out of Zane's Graveyard Slot. Picking all five up, he shuffled them into his deck and softly smirked.

"Next, I get two draw two cards."

Picking up two cards, Zane examined them before saying "I play Future Fusion. This spell lets me fuse together monsters that create a Fusion Type monster from my deck and send those Fusion Material monsters to my Grave. I send Cyberdark Edge (800/800), Cyberdark Horn (800/800), and Cyberdark Keel (800/800) to my Graveyard in order to create my Cyberdark Dragon (1000/1000)!"

Materializing onto the field was a creature that was a combination of the metallic looking bugs and machine snake like creature. It had a massive wingspan filled with sharp metal wings, a long metallic tail, and the head of the creature was a strange combination of the three creatures' mouths. It let out a loud roar, showing it's hate for other monsters.

"Thanks to my monster's special ability, I'm allowed to equip a Dragon from either of our Graveyards to it. The dragon I choose this time is yours Illidan, your Chaos Emperor Dragon – Envoy of the End (3000/2500)!"

Staring in shock, Illidan watched his mighty black dragon with an orange mane appear onto the field and let out a small roar. The combination machine dragon soon wrapped it's metallic arms around the black dragon, making the black dragon roar and struggle. Wires soon ran into the dragon, hooking it to the machine dragon.

"Of course, your dragon's points become my dragon's (1000 + 3000 4000/1000)."

The black dragon roared out in pain when suddenly it's body began to glow red. Energy seeped from the black dragon that was in great pain into the machine dragon, which seemed to enjoy the torture it was inflicting upon the black dragon.

"STOP IT!" Illidan cried out, finding it hard to watch his dragon in pain.

"Not till every ounce of energy is gone from your dragon." Zane coldly responded.

Staring at his dragon in pain, Illidan yelled again "STOP IT ZANE! YOU'RE HURTING HIM!"

Darkly chuckling, Zane asked "Why do you care about that useless dragon?"

"Because me and that dragon have been friends for nearly five millennia! That dragon took care of me, helped me protect the ones I love, and has fought by my side, no questions asked! To not care would be a betrayal of our friendship!" Illidan said with full emotion clearly in his voice.

The dragon managed to look down at Illidan and let out a soft growl, only to get a painful jolt of energy from the machine dragon.

"Heh, useless dribble." Zane muttered.

"You should understand Zane! You and Cyber End Dragon share a similar bond! I watched as you took care of your dragon."

Chuckling darkly, Zane remarked "That dragon is nothing to me. This dragon though, it has served me far better than that useless dragon."

"That dragon trusted you Zane! Don't fully betray it!" Illidan called out, hoping to break through to the Zane he knew.

Sneering, Zane replied "You're wasting your time Illidan. I no longer respect that dragon. It's useless! Now then, where was I? Ah yes, my Cyberdark Dragon has another ability. For each card in my Graveyard, my dragon gains 100 attack points. So far, I have twelve cards in my Grave, meaning my dragon gets a 1200 point boost (4000 + 1200 5200/1000)."

The machine dragon let out a loud roar while it's body began to glow purple. Once fully energized, the dragon let out another roar, showing it's readiness to destroy.

"Unfortunately, Future Fusion keeps my dragon from attacking this turn, but that's alright. I have another idea for ending this duel. I summon my Proto Cyber Dragon (1100/600)."

With a loud clanking, a snake like machine dragon with many wires hanging off of it's body appeared, letting out a small mechanical roar.

"Next up, I activate the spell Overload Fusion! I now remove from play my Proto Cyber Dragon along with any other Machine Type monsters I want from my Graveyard, so I send Cyberdark Edge, Cyberdark Horn, Cyberdark Keel, Cyber End Dragon, and Cyberdark Dragon."

Slowly, one by one, the monster cards slid out of Zane's Graveyard Slot. Picking the four up, along with the other two machine monsters on his field, he placed the six into the removed from play slot.

"By doing that, I can special summon one Dark Machine Type Fusion monster. My choice is this, my Chimeratech Over Dragon (?/?)!"

A black shroud of darkness formed onto the field, and slowly up from it, a machine snake like dragon with six heads appeared, with each head letting out a loud mechanical roar.

"For each Machine Type monster I sent to my removed from play pile, my dragon gains 800 points. Due that I sent six, that means my dragon has 4800 points (800 6 4800/800 6 4800)!"

The six headed machine dragon let out a massive roar while it's body was covered in a black aura. The aura soon died down, with the dragon boasting it's new strength.

"Oh yes, I forgot to mention, for each Fusion Type monster I removed from play, my dragon gets to attack that many times. Since I sent two, my dragon can attack twice in a turn!"

"No way…" Illidan muttered in disbelief.

Pointing at Illidan, Zane coldly said "Chimeratech Over Dragon, finish this duel by wiping out his mage with Over Kill!"

Each head of the six headed dragon roared loudly, with one head taking aim on Illidan. Opening it's jaws, it released a stream of flames straight for the white mage.

Seeing the oncoming blast, Illidan called out "I'm not through with you yet Zane! I reveal Spellbinding Circle!"

A green circle with strange golden symbols with formed on the top, left, right, and bottom formed, with a white question mark like symbol in the center appeared above the field. The circle took up a defensive stance in front of the white mage, quelling the flames. Pushing the flames backwards, the circle finally wrapped around the machine dragon's seven heads, holding it steady. The dragon struggled, but was unable to free itself.

"Thanks to this trap, your dragon is unable to attack or switch it's mode." Illidan calmly said.

Lightly shrugging, Zane nonchalantly remarked "I set a card face down and end my move." (Illidan 1100, Zane 800)

Letting out a sigh of relief, Illidan eyed the dueling field. "_That was close. Now what do I do? Unless I get something good right here, I'm finished. There has to be a way to stop that junkyard dragon, but how? Come on deck, I need you more than ever, so please, don't fail me now!_"

Drawing a card, Illidan softly smiled at it. "_Perfect._" "I activate Pot of Greed, so two new cards for me!"

Picking up two cards, Illidan continued on, saying "Next, I remove from play my Rapid-Fire Magician and Magician's Valkyrie, allowing me to special summon this, my Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning (3000/2500)!"

Emerging onto the field, a warrior in black ebony shiny armor with a mixture of gold trim, a black helmet, with a bronze colored sword in his right hand and a powerful black and gold shield in his left let out a small battle cry.

"I activate my Black Luster Soldier's special ability, so now I can remove from play one monster on the field. I choose your only monster, so say farewell to your Chimeratech Over Dragon!"

Aiming his shield at the mechanical dragon, the powerful soldier's shield began to glow golden. After a moment of gathering energy, the shield released a burst of golden energy. The blast struck the mechanical dragon with six heads, making it roar loudly before vanishing from the field.

Sneering, Zane calmly said "Not bad Illidan, but I'm not so easy to destroy. I activate my trap, Cyber Shadow Guardna. This trap acts like a monster now (?/?)."

A strange sphere like creature with metallic blade like wings, hands, and a few metallic spikes appeared onto the field with a mechanical growl.

Frowning at this, Illidan asked "What does that thing do?"

"Kind of simple really. Whenever you attack, Cyber Shadow Guardna's attack points become whatever that monster's attack and defense points are." Zane coolly remarked.

Lightly growling, Illidan said "I have no choice then but to place a face down card and end." (Illidan 1100, Zane 800)

Picking up a new card, Zane calmly said "Good, because I think I'll end this duel, once and for all. I activate my trap card, Return from a Different Dimension, allowing me to special summon as many removed from play monsters as possible, so long as I pay half my life points. Prepare to say hello to your worst nightmare Illidan."

Holding his arm out, Zane gave up half of his life points, causing a powerful electric shock to begin striking him. After a moment, he smirked, saying "Come to me my Cyberdark Dragon (1000/1000) and Cyber End Dragon (4000/4000)!"

A multicolored rift opened above the field, sending out many rainbow colored rays. Descending from the rift was the large combo dragon like creature, along with a powerful three headed machine dragon with a snake like body and large metallic wings. Both landed onto the field, each letting out a mighty roar.

"What a totally sweet move! Zane brought back both his dragons!" Jaden exclaimed.

Lightly glaring at Jaden, Chazz darkly muttered "Hello, we're supposed to be cheering for Illidan!"

Rubbing the back of his head, Jaden sheepishly smiled, saying "Oh yeah, but you got to admit, that was a great move."

"Why do I bother some days…" Chazz said with a heavy sigh.

On the field, Zane smirked evilly, saying "Thanks to Cyberdark Dragon's return, I can take a Dragon from either of our Graveyards once again, and guess what, I want your Chaos Emperor Dragon (3000/2500) once more (1000 + 3000 4000/1000)!"

Rematerializing onto the field, the large black dragon with an orange mane roared onto the field. The strange combo creature immediately sent out wires and entangled the black dragon, ensnaring it and dragging it till it fit up against the metallic dragon's body. A red aura surrounded the black dragon immediately, making it howl in pain.

"I SAID STOP IT ZANE! STOP HURTING MY DRAGON!" Illidan yelled, anger flaring from his eyes.

Sneering at this, Zane smartly replied "It hurts to see your dragon in pain, doesn't it Illidan? Well, don't worry, soon enough, that dragon will be your downfall. Now then, before your destruction, my dragon's other special ability kicks in. For each card in my Graveyard, my dragon gains 100 attack points. At this moment, I have nine cards in my Graveyard, meaning my dragon gains 900 more attack points (4000 + 900 4900/1000). Cyberdark Dragon, wipe out his Black Luster Soldier with Darkness Strident Blaze!"

Roaring loudly, the powerful combo creature began draining energy from the black dragon, making it squeal in pain. Opening it's jaws, the combo creature released a stream of black energy straight at the black armored warrior.

Pointing at his face down card, Illidan spiritedly called out "I don't think so Zane! I won't allow you to harm my monsters like that! I activate the trap Waboku, meaning all Battle Damage is reduced to zero! Now your attacks are useless, seeing how our monsters won't even be harmed!"

Three female mages in blue robes appeared in front of the black armored soldier and white mage. Each of the three began to softly chant, causing a nearly transparent barrier to appear. The barrier was immediately struck by the black energy blast, but held up to the attack.

"Looks like you wasted your turn Zane." Illidan smugly said.

Sneering, Zane countered with "Not quite, for I activate one of my face down cards, the spell De-Fusion. This will separate my Cyberdark Dragon back into it's three Fusion monster forms."

Chuckling, Illidan responded "Only if those monsters are in your Graveyard, which they're not."

"True Illidan, but I intend to have them back." Zane pointed out. "I activate another card, the spell Burial from a Different Dimension, which allows me to select three monsters from my removed from play pile and transfer them to my Graveyard. Since I chained this card, it activates first, which lets me transfer Cyberdark Edge, Cyberdark Horn, and Cyberdark Keel back to my Graveyard. Next, De-Fusion is triggered, meaning I can now bring back Cyberdark Edge (800/800), Cyberdark Horn (800/800), and Cyberdark Keel (800/800) all three to my field in defense."

The large combo monster slowly began to glow, sending the large black dragon away. Once the glow died down, the two metallic looking bug creatures and the machine snake like dragon appeared onto the field, with each taking up a defensive position on horizontal card images.

"Before I end, I activate the spell Different Dimension Capsule."

Rising up from the ground slowly, a coffin settled in front of Zane. Slowly, it opened with the lid facing Illidan.

Taking his deck out, Zane examined it before picking a card, saying "I place this card within my capsule and remove it from play for two of my Standby Phases."

A vertical card image slowly slid into the coffin like structure, which immediately closed it's lid and slid back into the ground.

"We'll see if you can take on what I have planned in two turns, now won't we Illidan?" Zane taunted. "I end my move." (Illidan 1100, Zane 400)

Calmly, Illidan drew his next card and said "It's time I got rid of those three nuisances on the field. Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning, take down Cyberdark Edge with Chaos Slash!"

Leaping forward, the ebony armored warrior swung his sword out to the right side of his body. Once within range, he made a simple slash across the first metallic bug like creature, making it howl in pain before exploding into millions of pieces.

"One down, two to go. Now I activate my warrior's special ability. He's allowed to attack twice within a turn if he destroys a monster, so go and destroy his Cyberdark Horn!"

Acknowledging Illidan's words with a nod, the warrior let out a grunt and made a beeline for the remaining metallic bug creature. With a simple slash, the machine creature howled out in agony before meeting the same fate it's mechanical brother had.

"Silent Magician, show Zane what you've got by attacking Cyberdark Keel with Silent Scepter Blast!"

Leaping into the air, the white robed mage aimed his scepter at the snake like dragon. Energy began to gather at the end of his staff, causing a white sphere of energy to appear. Without warning, the energy was launched from the tip of the staff and sent sailing towards the machine dragon. The blast struck the dragon hard, causing a large explosion to form with smoke billowing. Once the smoke settled, it was clear the machine dragon had not the strength to withstand the blast.

"I'll place this card on the field and end my turn." (Illidan 1100, Zane 400)

Smiling, Jaden happily said "Nice, Illidan has Zane down to his trap monster and that's all."

"Get a clue you Slacker! This duel is far from over. I'm sure Zane didn't just bring those three monsters of his back for defense." Chazz sharply said.

Frowning, Jaden shrugged, saying "Yeah, but you have to admit, those two are pretty even."

"At one time, they were so similar." Alexis mumbled.

"Yeah, and now they're opposites." Chazz added.

Looking at the two, Jaden nodded, saying "It's a shame that it had to come down to this."

"Yeah." Alexis and Chazz both mumbled together.

On the field, Zane drew his card and smirked. Suddenly, the coffin that had been on the field before slowly rose up from the ground and opened.

"Hold on Zane, it's only been one Standby Phase. You can't add that card to your hand yet!" Illidan declared.

Sneering, Zane nodded, saying "True Illidan, but this isn't Different Dimension Capsule's fault. It's the card I placed within it that is at fault. You see, I placed Card from a Different Dimension within it. This spell automatically activates the following turn it was removed from play. We each now get to draw two cards."

Picking up two cards simultaneously, the pair looked over their hands. "I'm ending this duel now Illidan. First, I summon Cyber Kirin (300/800)."

Materializing onto the field, a silver machine dog with many spikes going down it's back, a spike on the end of it's tail, sharp clawed hands and feet, and a set of sharp teeth took the field.

"By sending this monster to my Graveyard, I can now negate the damage I'll receive due to effects this turn."

In a flash of green, the dog like creature vanished from the field without a trace.

"Next, I activate the spell Power Bond, allowing me to create a Machine Type Fusion monster."

"But you need monsters to do that." Illidan calmly reminded.

Smirking, Zane simply replied "True, but I have a way around that. I activate another spell, Cybernetic Fusion Support. By paying half my life points, I can now just remove the Fusion Material monsters I need from my Graveyard instead. So, I send Cyberdark Edge, Cyberdark Horn, and Cyberdark Keel all to my removed from play pile, allowing me to bring this back, my Cyberdark Dragon (1000/1000)!"

One by one, the three monster cards slid out of Zane's Graveyard Slot. Picking the three up and placing them within his remove from play slot. Almost immediately, the strange combination of the three monsters appeared. It let out an evil roar, shaking the field slightly with it.

"Thanks to Power Bond, my dragon's strength is doubled (1000 2 2000/1000). Now then, as you might remember, I can now equip a Dragon to my Cyberdark Dragon from either of our Graveyards, so I pick your weak Chaos Emperor Dragon (3000/2500), whose attack points are now added to my dragons (2000 + 3000 5000/1000)!"

Appearing wrapped up within wires once more, the black dragon squealed out in pain when a red aura appeared around it's body. The combo dragon roared loudly at the same time as it's power increased.

"Remember, thanks to every card in my Graveyard, my dragon also gets another boost (5000 + 14 100 6400/1000)." Turning a cold glare to Illidan, Zane angrily yelled out "Game over Illidan! Cyberdark Dragon, end this by obliterating his pathetic soldier with Darkness Strident Blaze!"

Letting out a massive roar that sent out shockwaves, the dragon fired a black stream of dark energy at the black armored soldier, who only stood his ground.


	68. Chapter 68: Betrayl, Pt 4

**Why hello again everyone. Not too much has happened in the last few days. My grandfather went back to the hospital again due that he has the same thing he had before (C-diff). He was doing well yesterday from what my mom told me, which I'm glad to hear. He gets out on Saturday, so he'll be home by Christmas at the least, I hope. Otherwise, things are moving along. My mate loved her birthday presents. I got her a card, which she 'oh' and 'ah' over, lol. I also got her a complete DVD box set for Rurouni Kenshin, which she truly loved and has been watching. Lastly, I got her some Christmas tree ornaments since she has very few for our tree (most that are on it are mine since I've been a kid). Hmm, I think that's it for home life.**

**Story wise, progress is being made on **_**Another**_**, and some planning for **_**Minutes to Midnight**_** has been going on. Heh, with me and ardee in different time zones, it's sometimes hard to get in touch with one another. Thank goodness for email and IM, lol. Anyways, things are moving along with both, so it's all good.**

**Last time, Illidan and Zane's duel continued to escalate, with Zane taking CED and equipping it to the Cyberdark Dragon, which enraged Illidan to see his dragon treated so roughly. Will this fury of his monster's mistreatment be enough to push Illidan far enough to beat Zane, or will Zane's Underworld Deck defeat Illidan once and for all?**

**Ok, time again for the best part! That's right, the reviews!**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Lol, glad you got back up. (/Watches you get stuck in the door frame due to the wide load on your back. Sweat drops again.\) Yeah…**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. True, Future Fusion's effect is not the true effect from the card game. I followed the show's example originally, but oh well. Lol, yes, I may have overdone it with Jaden and the word 'ironic.' I told my mate happy birthday for you, and she said thank you. Thanks for the review.**

**Knives91: Lol, yes, sadistic traitor suits him well. LOL! I knew I needed to get her something shiny. Cats are easily distracted with shiny stuff, lol. Thanks for the review.**

**Isis the Sphinx: Thank you. Sometimes writing duels does give me headaches, especially the larger duels and multi-person (tag, 2 vs. 1, three-way, etc) duels.**

**Thank you everyone for the reviews! I enjoyed all of them. To any who haven't reviewed, but read, don't feel shy. I enjoy bad or good reviews. Criticism is essential really for writing, lol. Anyways, thanks to all who have read this story thus far and continues to support it. Till next time, everyone enjoy the chapter!**

**Chapter 68**

Growling through his teeth, Illidan called out "I'm not done yet Zane! I reveal my spell card, Spell Textbook!"

The stream of dark energy immediately stopped within a few inches of the black armored soldier, who defiantly glared at it.

"Thanks to this spell card, I can discard all cards in my hand. I then must draw one card, and if it's a spell card, I can activate it immediately."

Looking at his deck, Illidan prepared to draw. Placing his hand on top of the card, he silently said in his mind "_Please, let this card help me. It's now or never, so here goes!_"

Drawing, he turned it around to show Zane, saying "I activate the spell Mystic Box! Thanks to this, I can now perform a little trick for you."

A grey box with gold trim, three sections with each having a blue question mark in the middle and a small patch of red surrounding it, appeared onto the field. The door to the box soon enough opened, revealing an empty box within.

"First, I choose a monster of mine to place within the box. I'll pick my Silent Magician, so in you go my friend."

Nodding, the white robed mage hopped into the box, allowing the door to close.

"Next, I need a volunteer from your field, and I think your Cyberdark Dragon will do. So in he goes to this other box!"

On the field, a larger version of the box that the white robed mage entered into appeared around the large combination dragon.

"Time for the magic to this trick." Illidan said with a wink.

Swords instantly materialized above Illidan's field and began skewering the box with the white mage in it.

"Why bother to destroy his own monster?" Chazz asked in annoyance.

Smirking, Illidan pointed at the box on his field, which opened. Once the box opened, it was revealed that the combo dragon's card image was within the box instead with swords sticking through it.

"Oh wow, Illidan destroyed Zane's monster!" Jaden exclaimed happily.

Smiling at Jaden's words, Illidan called out "You may have lost your monster Zane, but you get a consolation prize. You get my Silent Magician."

The larger box on Zane's field opened up, revealing the white mage. Once out of the box, the large box dematerialized, along with the one on Illidan's field.

Growling, Zane pointed at Illidan's warrior, yelling "I'm not through yet! Silent Magician, destroy your former master's friend!"

With a sad sigh, the white mage pointed it's staff at the black soldier. Turning his face to look away, the white mage released a blast of white energy, which easily tore through the black armored soldier.

Electricity instantly formed in the air around Illidan, striking him repeatedly, making him fall to one knee.

"That will teach you to meddle with my monster! I end my turn." Zane snapped. (Illidan 600, Zane 400)

After a few moments of panting, Illidan finally started to stand, but only got halfway up before falling back down. "_Oh no… I've nearly reached my limit! Each time I've taken a hit, I've gotten weaker. I'm nearly exhausted already._"

Glancing back at the group behind him of Jaden, Chazz, and Alexis, Illidan shook his head. "_No! They're depending on me! Come on body, just a little longer! I have to win, no matter what! They're counting on me, along with Marie, and everyone else that Zell has harmed! I can't give up, not now, not ever!_"

Summoning up more strength from within his body, Illidan stood back up and stared down Zane. Picking up a card, Illidan glanced at it and smirked.

"Let's end this Zane! I play the spell Chaos Revisited!"

Frowning, Zane asked "What is that?"

Smirking lightly, Illidan replied "Glad you asked. First, I have to pay half my life points to activate this card."

Slowly, Illidan's life points drained away, causing bolts of electricity to start striking him. Crying out in pain, he fell to one knee, panting heavily.

"_Gotta get up…_"

Struggling to stand, Illidan slowed his breathing, trying hard to regain his composure. After a moment, he finally did, saying "Now we can move on. Once I've paid half my life points, I can special summon one monster from my deck, hand, Graveyard, or removed from play pile with the word 'Chaos' or 'Envoy' in it. The monster I pick is an old friend, so rise up once more Dark Magician of Chaos (2800/2600)!"

A pentagram made of fire ignited on the field. Slowly, rising up from within the pentagram's center was the black armored mage with blue skin. His eyes were closed till he finally was level with the field. Upon opening his eyes, the flames were extinguished instantly.

"Why bother with that mage? He's too weak for the monster you gave me to fight against." Zane smugly pointed out.

Slightly nodding, Illidan calmly replied "True, but my mage has a special ability. When special summoned or summoned, he can return one spell card from my Graveyard to my hand, so I pick my Pot of Greed."

Placing his hand in front of the Graveyard Slot, Illidan eagerly awaited the spell card's return. Slowly, the card slid out into his awaiting hand, which picked it up instantly.

"Next, I activate Pot of Greed, meaning two new cards for me!"

Quickly picking up two cards, Illidan examined them and smirked. "This is the beginning of the end for you Zane! First up, I play the spell Monster Reborn, meaning I can bring back one monster from my Graveyard. That monster is a very familiar one, so return to me Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning (3000/2500)!"

Emerging onto the field once more was the warrior in black ebony armor with a powerful sword and shield. Letting out a small battle cry, the warrior took a fighting stance to the left of the black armored mage, whom smiled at the soldier.

"You're still wasting my time Illidan. The best you can hope to do this turn is destroy yourself." Zane smugly remarked.

"Wrong Zane!" Illidan quickly responded. "I will finish this duel this turn, and I'll do it with this next card! It's time for a field change, so I play the field spell Chaos Control!"

Bringing his left arm vertical, Illidan tapped the end of his Duel Disk, causing a slot to open. Placing a single card within the slot, the slot lightly glowed and quickly shut. Upon shutting, the sky began to cloud in. Dark clouds filled the sky, with lightning flashing through it. Thunder could be heard all around as well, and on the field, a cave appeared with a barren wasteland surrounding it.

"Thanks to my field spell, once per a turn, I can special summon one monster with the word 'Chaos' or 'Envoy' in it's name to the field from my deck, hand, Graveyard, or removed from play pile without worrying about it's summoning requirements. There is one draw back to this card though. While it's on the field, I must skip my Draw Phase, but I won't need it."

Turning a cold glare towards Zane, Illidan icily said "It's time you paid the price for harming my dragon earlier. I activate Chaos Control's effect and bring back the end of your destructive reign, my Chaos Emperor Dragon – Envoy of the End (3000/2500)!"

Lightning began streaking more and more fiercely through the sky till it finally struck the field, just to the right of the black armored mage. From the strike, the large black dragon with an orange mane appeared with a mighty roar. The mage slightly smiled and gave a small nod to the dragon, who in turn returned the nod.

"You continue to waste your turn Illidan. None of your monsters can beat my monsters. Just give in Illidan." Zane admonished.

"Never Zane, especially since I'm about to win!" Illidan declared. "I activate Chaos Control's special effect, which is activated when I have three Chaos monsters on the field. By sending it to the Graveyard, I'm allowed to destroy all monsters on your field. Plus, I'm then allowed to direct attack you, so let's end this!"

Without warning, lightning began streaking down from the sky, striking the machine creature in front of Zane, which exploded with a thunderous force. The white mage only sadly smiled at the group of monsters on Illidan's field before being struck, leaving Zane's field empty.

Zane only lightly gasped in shock at the loss of his monsters, saying "No… I will not lose now! I've come too far to lose to you!"

"You may have come a long way Zane, but you lost your way somewhere along the way. I'm sorry to have to do this, but to save everyone, I must end this! I promise, I'll get you back though." Illidan said with compassion in his voice.

Hardening his eyes, he called out "Dark Magician of Chaos, end this with Chaos Scepter Blast!"

Spinning his scepter with one hand, the mage finally slammed the tip of it into the ground using both hands, sending a sphere of pure darkness at Zane. The sphere struck him hard without hesitation, causing a powerful explosion to ensue. Not long after that, through the smoke, electricity flew through the smoke, showing that the Shadow Game's torturous game had activated.

All Zane could do was scream in pain as his body crumpled to the ground. The smoke surrounding him vanished, but his cloths continued to allow smoke to pour off of them.

Staring at Zane, Illidan watched as he looked up at Illidan with eyes that showed a broken soul within them with a tear sliding out. "Zane…" Illidan softly said.

In an instant, Zane's body began glowing black. Immediately, his eyes dulled in color, and he fell over onto his side.

Falling to one knee, Illidan began to pant heavily, causing the others to come running up to him.

"Illidan!" Jaden cried out, reaching him first. "Are you alright?"

Panting still, Illidan muttered between breaths "I'm a bit exhausted."

Seeing Illidan would be fine, Alexis walked over to Zane's body and laid his head within her lap. Softly caressing his face, she whispered with tears sliding down her face and onto his "Zane, why, why did you do this?"

Sighing sadly at the sight, Chazz placed a calming hand on her shoulder, saying "He did what he thought was right Alexis."

Looking up at Chazz with a brokenhearted gaze, she said "But he should have known better! Illidan only wanted to help, but Zane decided to fight for the enemy instead. It just doesn't make sense."

"Legato managed to twist Zane's logic to his own." Illidan said with a bit of raggedness in his breath. With great difficulty, he finally stood up and slowly walked over to the others with Jaden close behind.

Staring down at Zane, he sighed, saying "It's a shame Legato managed to do this to Zane. I only wish I could have saved him."

Looking up at the moon, Illidan calmly said "We need to go home and rest. Can you two grab Zane?"

Nodding in agreement, Jaden and Chazz gently lifted Zane onto each of their shoulders. Leisurely, the four returned to Illidan's home, each seeking rest.

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Three hours after returning home, Illidan sat alone in the little enclosure of the woods where he often meditated and physically trained. Staring up at the sky while laying on his back, he sighed lightly.

"_This duel with Zell, I don't know how it will go. Even though I have all four of my Chaos monsters again, and Anubis, that doesn't mean I'll win._"

Brow furrowing, Illidan suddenly had a small flashback from earlier that year. A memory of Marie's bad dream now began to fill his mind.

"_It wasn't a dream after all. She had a vision of the future. Does that mean I will lose my duel with Zell?_"

A voice cut through Illidan's thoughts, asking "Illidan, why are you out here?"

Looking up, Illidan softly smiled, saying "Jaden, what are you doing out here? I thought you'd be asleep."

"I was for a while, but I woke up and went to talk to you. You were gone, so I figured you came out here." Jaden nonchalantly responded while plopping down beside of Illidan. "Again, why are you out here?"

Softly chuckling, Illidan calmly replied "Just thinking about tomorrow."

"Are you worried?" Jaden asked with concern.

Lightly chuckling again, Illidan remarked "I'd be lying if I said I wasn't."

Turning serious, he added "Marie has been held by Zell/Legato for nearly five days. The poison has most likely nearly paralyzed her. I have to get her back and heal her, immediately before…"

Unable to finish the sentence, Illidan swallowed the lump in his throat, saying "I have to get her back, no matter what."

"We will Illidan." Jaden said with a sad smile. Placing a hand on Illidan's shoulder, he added "We will get her back, I promise."

Slightly smiling, Illidan nodded, but his brow then furrowed. "There is more to worry about though that you don't know about." he cryptically said.

Raising his eyebrows, Jaden asked "Oh, what? You can tell me man, so don't be shy about it."

Sighing, Illidan stared at the ground for a moment before saying "Earlier this year, at the beginning of the school year, Marie had a dream one night."

"A dream? You're worried about a dream?" Jaden asked with a bit of surprise in his voice.

"Not just a dream Jaden." Illidan quickly remarked. Lightly sighing, he continued on, saying "I don't know if you knew this or not from our talks, but Marie was gifted with the ability of foresight."

Frowning, Jaden looked at Illidan with confusion, asking "What is foresight?"

Sweat dropping, Illidan replied "It means the ability to see the past, present, and future in visions."

"Oh, I get it now."

Nodding, Illidan continued on, saying "She was gifted with this in the past as a young child, and kept it even into this new life. When our Millennium Items were created in the past, her visions had more clarity, although she rarely gazed into the future."

Seeing Jaden had caught on, Illidan added "At any rate, the reason I speak of this was due to a dream she had earlier this year. She woke up rather upset and told me of the dream. In it, she saw me and someone who looked like the Zell we knew from the past dueling."

"You mean this new combination of Zell and Legato?"

"Yep, that's who it was now. I'm sure of it after meeting him. Anyways, we were dueling and I had Anubis on the field. Without warning, Anubis got destroyed by something, and I lost the duel. It was a Shadow Game, so I was being sent to the Shadow Realm. Marie said she couldn't move her body, that she was unable to move at all, or yell, or anything."

Pausing for a moment, Illidan finally said "My guess now is that it was a vision of the future. We thought it was just a dream, but now, I know without a doubt it's most likely a vision of the future."

"So, you're going to lose your duel to Zell!?" Jaden asked, with great nervousness in his voice.

Softly smiling, Illidan looked up at the sky, saying "I don't know for sure. Marie's visions haven't always been right on the money. For one, in Tournament of Power, she predicted that one of three or four would be the one to face off with Gozaburo. I was one of the people, but she couldn't figure out who it was, plus her vision of the future was clouded after that. Plus, we had a duel in which she predicted she'd win, but she lost. You see, Marie's visions can be accurate to a point, but fate does change. The future is not set in stone. There is no fate but what you make of it."

"I see, so you think you'll win then?" Jaden asked with optimism.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan only replied with "I don't know for sure, but I hope I win. Marie must be saved, and if I have to forfeit my life to save it, I will."

"Illidan…" Jaden murmured.

Glancing up at the sky once more, Illidan softly smiled. Pointing at a familiar collection of stars, Illidan asked "Jaden, do you see those stars there?"

Taking a moment to study the stars, Jaden finally nodded. Lightly smiling at this, Illidan added "They form the constellation known as the Phoenix. Have you heard of the phoenix?"

"Wasn't it a bird of fire?" Jaden responded after a moment of pondering.

Nodding, Illidan smiled, saying "Yes, it was. The phoenix was said to be a legendary bird of fire that couldn't completely die. If defeated, it turned to ash, but would be reborn from the ash."

With his eyes misting, Illidan added "My father from ancient times told me of the phoenix, how it is much like the love he had for my mother, and then for me. My love for Marie and those that I care about is like the phoenix also. It is eternal, and will always burn bright."

"I never thought of it that way." Jaden quietly said.

Patting Jaden on the shoulder, Illidan stood up, saying "Just remember Jaden, no matter what happens tomorrow, I'm proud of you, and I do love you. You, Alexis, Chazz, Marie, and everyone I care about, will forever be in my heart, and my love for all of you will always live on."

Standing up as well, Jaden softly smiled and hugged Illidan, saying "Thank you."

Breaking free of the embrace, Illidan turned towards his home, saying "Come on, let's get some sleep. We'll need it."

"Right." Jaden cheerily said.

Walking towards their destination, Illidan glanced up once more at the stars. "_Marie, no matter what, my love for you will never die. I promise, I will give up everything to save you. No matter what, I will always be with you._"

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Seeing the small island with buildings on it's horizon in the distance, a young man smiled. "Finally, I've made it. I just hope I'm not too late."


	69. Chapter 69: Card of Fate, Pt 1

**Hey there everyone. So, this week has been decent, if not cool, thus far. Thus far, I've had mostly meetings this week, other than Monday and Tuesday where I had to work hard on replacing some code in a 45 files, lol. Other than that, things have been pretty cool. My mom and sister are coming in today to my grandparents to stay for a few days. I may head up there tomorrow to visit, which should be fun. Sunday, we're going to go see my mate's family, which shouldn't be so bad. I suppose Monday, nothing is really going on… yet, lol. I'm off Monday (taking off) thru Wednesday (taking off Wednesday, of course), so I only work 2 days this coming week, which is nice. I do have a bit of work to do unfortunately though, which sucks, but oh well, lol.**

**Ah yes, me and my mate had a most interesting duel last night. We once and a while break out the cards and get our game on (or clothes off, pending on the situation and amount of alcohol, lol). Anyways, we dueled a set, with her winning the first round. I white washed her the second time around, which sucked for her. The third round was interesting. She played a combo of White Magician Pikaru (1200/0) (During your standby phase, gain 400 points for every monster on your field), the equip spell Heart of Clear Water (made her monster survive any battle), and the permanent trap Spirit Barrier (reduces all battle damage to 0 so long as a monster is out on your field). To begin with, this little combo isn't so bad, so long as you have spell/trap removal. The problem was, I had used mine already… Plus, she already had over 10k in life points due that she used Draining Shield to protect herself once… Anyways, she had me cornered. I couldn't reduce her life points, and mine were going down. We managed to put one another in a stalemate pretty much. I had a defensive setup using Jetroid equipped with Heavy Mech Support Platform, giving it 2300 defense. She couldn't get past it due that her higher level fairies were gone (she runs a fairy deck, hence the idea for Marie in the story to use one). Then it became apparent to her that she would deck out before beating me. All seemed lost for her till she drew Mage Power, which made Pikaru invincible… I had next to nothing to combat that, lol. Btw, her Pikaru had been on the field forever by now. She had over 20k in life points, while I had freaking 1200 or so! I was like, what the hell am I going to do now!? Luckily, I held on somehow with a nice combo of destroying Pikaru with Mystical Space Typhoon. See, she had used Premature Burial to get Pikaru out earlier when she made her insane defense/life point gainer. With Pikaru gone, things seemed hopeful, till she pulled out another big gun or two. Luckily, I managed to hang on for dear life till she decked out. The final total, which is insane, was this: she had 21,900 life points, while I had a meager 50… I kid you all not on my total. That was how many I had left in the end, lol. It was insane! The duel was the best I've had with her in a long time, with every turn being heart stopping! Sheesh, I never thought I'd win, but I did, somehow…**

**Story wise, things are moving with **_**Another**_**, and are getting ready to move with **_**Minutes to Midnight**_**. I've been focusing more on **_**Another**_** due that I was going to start posting it once I had enough chapters wrote up and to the point I deemed that the storyline wouldn't change too much in the early chapters. Posting on it should begin within the near future. When, I'm not sure, lol.**

**Last time, Illidan defeated Zane once and for all, but now someone has arrived onto the island. Who is this mysterious stranger that has arrived, and are they friend or foe?**

**Ok, time for the reviews!**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Of course, you'd be disappointed Marik! (/Shoots spit wad at him and laughs when it hits him in the head.\) What, it wasn't me? Lol, but anyways, nice job on the duel. Things look interesting at the least. Yes, the new arrival is a mystery. It seems to have thrown everyone off. Heh, I figured everyone would know though… I can't wait for the end of your duel. Thanks for the review!**

**Knives91: Yep, so long Zane, lol. Thanks. LOL! Yes, the last line could have been more obscure, hehe. Thanks for the review.**

**x-knight20: Thank you. Lol, glad you got out of the door. (/Watches truck flip due that two tires fly apart.\) Umm, I wonder if I should have told him I slashed those tires and they were leaking air? Nah!**

**Thanks everyone for the reviews. I appreciated them all! Well, next time it will be Christmas Eve, so till then, everyone enjoy this chapter. Later!**

**Chapter 69**

Waking up at first light, Illidan decided to examine his deck, as well as prepare his mind and body for the upcoming duel that day while the students slept. Leaving a note explaining he was out training, he grabbed his Duel Disk, and left the house quietly.

Once out to his usual training spot, he began stretching his body out. Finally happy that he had limbered up enough, he took off running.

"_Ten miles should do for now._" he silently decided.

After an hour of running, Illidan returned to his training spot and opened a bottle of water he had brought with him. Deciding to rest for a few minutes, he laid down upon the ground, allowing the cool morning breeze to blow over him. Staring up at the clouds, he saw a storm was approaching the island.

"_How appropriate._" he mused.

Standing up, he slowly began practicing many offensive moves he had learned over the years on a tree. Bit by bit, his intensity of movement and speed increased, till finally he unknowingly began calling on his Shadow Powers. Unconsciously, he ignited his Hidden Flame technique, enabling him to move much faster than normal, and increasing his strength as well.

Images of his last fight with Zell flashed through his mind within moments of using his Hidden Flame technique. Infuriated by the fact he had failed, he hunched over and began gathering Shadow Magic within his left hand.

Roaring out loudly, he screamed "Shadow Blade!"

The tree instantly shattered at the impact point, toppling the top half over onto the ground. Standing there panting with his hand still letting black bolts of electricity come from his hand, Illidan glared at the remains of the tree.

"Haven't you heard of an ax?" a mysterious voice asked.

Turning quickly in a defensive stance, Illidan turned to become wide eyed. Examining the person before him, he saw a young man with mostly black spiky hair that had a pink outer band, with blonde bangs, and the most mysterious, if not kind, set of violet eyes. The violet eyed stranger had on a pair of black leather pants, black boots, a belt that hung off his hip, a black muscle shirt, and an older version of a Duel Disk on his left arm.

Gasping, Illidan asked "Yugi, is that you?"

Smiling, Yugi nodded, saying "Yep, it's me."

Powering down his Shadow Powers, Illidan walked forward and offered a friendly handshake to Yugi, who gladly accepted and turned it into a hug. Separating, the two smiled at one another.

Smiling, Illidan kindly said "It's good to see you again Yugi."

"And it's good to see you once again." Yugi replied.

"So, why are you here? I figured you were still searching the world for places where Shadow Powers were popping up."

Nodding, Yugi remarked "Yes, I was, but I had a vision recently. The vision was from Yami."

"Yami? How is it possible for him to contact you at all?" Illidan asked with curiosity.

Frowning, Yugi replied "I'm not sure, but maybe due that we were once connected. Anyways, he warned me about the fight you're about to become involved in. He told me to go to Pegasus and get a card from him, and then return it to you."

"So, he knew about Zell returning then?" Illidan asked with a small sigh.

Shrugging, Yugi simply said "I don't know for sure, but he said you'd need a certain card. So, I went to Pegasus and told him what Yami told me. Pegasus agreed and gave me the card, sending me in response to you. Anyways, here I am, with a card for you."

"What card?"

Smirking, Yugi responded "I can't tell you till you duel me for it."

Frowning, Illidan replied "I don't have time for this Yugi. What is the card?"

Holding his arm out, Yugi's older Duel Disk powered up and immediately unfolded into a blade. "I told you, I can't tell you till you earn this card."

"Yugi, I won't duel. I don't have time for this, so keep the card." Illidan sternly said while turning away.

"That's right Illidan, turn away if you intend on losing to Zell and failing Marie." Yugi sternly remarked.

Stopping in his tracks, Illidan stood still for a moment, his hands clenched into fists, making his knuckles turn white. "I will not fail Marie." Illidan coldly stated.

"Then duel me. If you wish to save her, duel me, and take the card I offer. If not, don't even bother facing Zell." Yugi stated.

Still clenching his fists, Illidan finally began walking forward, saying "I'll save Marie my own way."

"Pigheaded fool!" Yugi angrily called out. Holding his right hand out, Yugi summoned his Shadow Powers, creating a barrier to keep Illidan contained.

Halting at the barrier, Illidan turned to face Yugi and threw an icy glare. In a cold tone, Illidan growled out "Yugi, let that barrier down now before I really get mad!"

"No." was all Yugi stubbornly said.

"Do you have a death wish or something!? You know I can rip this barrier apart within a minute, or cut you down, so why do this!?" Illidan snapped.

"I don't have a death wish, but Yami made me promise to make you face me and earn this card. I won't defy his request, so come on and face me, unless you're afraid." Yugi tauntingly said.

Infuriated, Illidan prepared to power up his own Shadow Powers, but stopped. With a heavy sigh, he walked over and grabbed his Duel Disk and strapped it on. Taking his deck out, he shuffled it and replaced it into the deck slot of his Duel Disk.

"I don't want to waste the Shadow Magic to break your barrier, so let's do this." Illidan sternly said.

Holding his Duel Disk out, the blade pushed out vertically and then a new blade came out horizontally. Lighting up, the Duel Disk whirled to life.

Simultaneously, the pair drew five cards, saying "Let's duel!"

Picking up a sixth card, Yugi lightly smirked, saying "Since I'm visiting, I'll begin. I start by summoning Gamma the Magnet Warrior (1500/1800) in defense mode."

A pink metal magnet creature with strange wings, large pink feet, a big blue S on it's chest, silver spring like arms, a magnet around it's neck, and a strange pink head appeared onto the field with it's arms crossed.

"I'll place a face down card to end my move." (Yugi 8000, Illidan 8000)

Drawing a new card, Illidan examined it for a moment before saying "I special summon this, my Cyber Dragon (2100/1600)."

A mechanical snake like dragon appeared onto the field with a loud mechanical roar.

"How did you summon that? It's a level five monster." Yugi asked, unsure of what was happening.

Lightly smiling, Illidan responded kindly with "Simple there Yugi. Cyber Dragon has a special ability that allows him to be special summoned to the field when I have no monsters and you have at least one. Since he was a special summon, I can still have a normal summon, so I pick my Luster Dragon (1900/1600)!"

Materializing onto the field was a sapphire dragon with bone like wings, a powerful set of clawed hands and feet, and a set of sharp teeth.

"Luster Dragon, go ahead and make quick work of Gamma with your Ruby Blaster!"

Letting out a small roar, the sapphire dragon began opening it's jaws, revealing ruby colored energy gathering up into a sphere.

"Not so fast Illidan, I have a trap! Go Zero Gravity! This forces our monsters to switch their current modes, so my Gamma goes to attack mode while your two monsters go to defense." Yugi declared.

Standing up, the pink magnet creature uncrossed it's arms while the horizontal card image under it shattered. Meanwhile, the sapphire dragon stopped gathering energy within it's jaws and crossed it's arms, while the machine dragon coiled up. Both had a horizontal card image form under their bodies.

Lightly frowning, Illidan muttered "I place a face down card and end." (Yugi 8000, Illidan 8000)

Picking up his next card, Yugi smiled, saying "Here we go. I start by playing the spell Ties of the Brethren. I pay a 1000 life points, and now I can special summon two level four or lower monsters from my deck in defense. I pick Alpha the Magnet Warrior (1400/1700) and Beta the Magnet Warrior (1700/1600)!"

Placing both monster cards horizontally onto his Duel Disk, Yugi watched as a grey magnet creature with a sword and shield, followed by a yellow magnet creature with magnets for it's hands, feet, and had a magnet wrapped around it's head.

"I now send Alpha, Beta, and Gamma to the Graveyard in order to special summon Valkyrion the Magna Warrior (3500/3850)!"

Each of the three magnet creatures let out a small moan and began to split apart. Slowly, the pieces began to form a new single creature. The creature had a sword, powerful arms and feet, a strong set of pink wings, and a yellow masked face with magnets on it. Letting out a new moan, the creature took an offensive stance.

"Next, I summon Skilled Dark Magician (1900/1700)!"

A mage in black robes with large shoulder pads, a green staff held in two hands, black gloves, a black helmet, and only his face visible appeared.

"And before you can even think about activating that face down card, I activate the spell Mystical Space Typhoon, allowing me to destroy your card!"

Gusting across the field, a funnel cloud struck Illidan's face down card, revealing it to be a trap card.

Lightly growling, Illidan muttered "Great, no Magic Cylinder to help out."

"That's not all." Yugi declared. "Valkyrion, attack Illidan's Cyber Dragon with Magna Slash! And Skilled Dark Magician, destroy his dragon with Dark Magic Burst!"

Rushing across the field, the large magnet creature brought it's sword forward, preparing to attack. With a single sweep, it slashed the machine dragon completely in half, leaving a shower of sparks in it's wake. The remains of the dragon exploded quickly, leaving a small plume of smoke in it's wake. At the same moment the magnet creature returned, the dark robed mage pointed his staff at the sapphire dragon. A single sphere of black energy came flying from the staff straight for the dragon, which was unable to resist the blast, easily blowing it into pieces.

"I'll end with a face down. That's all for now." (Yugi 7000, Illidan 8000)

Drawing his new card, Illidan examined it before slapping it onto his Duel Disk horizontally face down, saying "I set a monster. I think I'll leave it at that." (Yugi 7000, Illidan 8000)

"You're going to have to do better than that to win that card from me Illidan." Yugi boasted while drawing his next card. "I start things off with the spell Pot of Greed, allowing me to draw two new cards."

When Yugi picked up two cards, the mage in black robes suddenly reacted. A small symbol on his right shoulder began glowing light purple, making Illidan raise his eyebrows.

"Curious to what's going on? Well, let me explain." Yugi calmly said. "When a spell card is played, my Skilled Dark Magician's special ability is triggered. He gains one Spell Counter per a spell card played. He now has one, and when he has three, I can activate his special ability, but more on that in a few moments. Next up, I play the spell Graceful Charity, allowing me to draw three cards, but I have to get rid of two from my hand when I'm finished."

Picking up three new cards, Yugi lightly grinned while the symbol on the mage's left shoulder began glowing light purple. "Alright, now I'll discard these two cards, my Summoned Skull and Swift Gaia The Fierce Knight. Time I played another spell card, so I activate Monster Reborn, allowing me to bring back my old friend, Summoned Skull (2500/1200)!"

Slowly, the monster card slid out of Yugi's Graveyard Slot and into his eagerly awaiting hand. Once in his hand, he picked it up and slapped it to his Duel Disk. Lightning suddenly struck the field without warning, and from it came a demon like creature made of white bone with red muscle surrounding most of it's body. It's hands had three claws, it's feet the same way, and on it's back were a pair of blue wings. The head of the creature had a pair of horns, and looked mostly like a skull.

"I'm not through yet, for thanks to playing Monster Reborn, my Skilled Dark Magician gained his last Spell Counter. Since he has three, I can now remove all three of his counters and sacrifice him to special summon from my deck my favorite monster, Dark Magician (2500/2100)!"

The black robed mage vanished in a small flash of light, but replacing him was a stronger mage in purple armor with flowing purple robes. He wore a strange set of armor, with a strange mage's hat, and had a powerful green staff that was nearly as tall as his body. His long hair that could be seen hanging out of his hat was purple and his eyes were the color of lilac.

"Alright, here goes! Summoned Skull, attack with Lightning Strike!"

Raising it's arms, lightning began flowing out of the white bone creature into a huge sphere above the field. The electricity was instantly drawn towards the face down monster, striking it over and over. The card image soon vanished to reveal a young mage in a kneeling position. The mage had blonde hair that stood up somewhat, a red bandanna that was somewhat long in the back, purple body armor that covered it's body, except for it's arms, and had a green staff positioned defensively in front of itself. The lightning struck the mage, making it cry out in pain till it finally exploded into millions of pieces.

Smirking, Illidan calmly said "Too bad you just destroyed my Apprentice Magician (400/800). Thanks to it's special ability, I'm allowed to special summon a new level two or lower Spellcaster Type monster to the field in face down defense mode."

Picking his deck up, Illidan examined it before choosing a card and slapping it horizontally to the field, saying "I pick this card, so give me your best shot."

Smiling at Illidan's confidence, Yugi shot back "Best shot, eh? Well, we'll see about that! Dark Magician, show him your Dark Magic Attack!"

Raising his staff, the purple armored mage fired a blast of green energy straight at the face down card image. Upon impact, the card image shattered, revealing a girl with mid-back length dark orange hair. She wore a blue dress that nearly touched her knees and wore dark orange shoes. The blast completely destroyed her, making her cry out in pain before vanishing.

"You're wide open now Illidan. Valkyrion, direct attack with Magna Slash!"

Rushing forward, the large magnet creature pulled back it's right arm with the sword in hand and prepared to slash Illidan, but was stopped by a strange barrier. Behind the barrier, the orange haired girl was seen with a depressed look.

"Huh? Why did my attack get blocked?" Yugi asked with a look of bewilderment on his face.

Smiling at Yugi's curiosity, Illidan replied "Kind of easy Yugi. You attacked The Unhappy Maiden (0/100), and destroyed her. When she goes to the Graveyard due to battle, your Battle Phase is automatically ended."

Frowning, Yugi sighed, saying "I see. In that case, I'll place this face down and let you have a shot." (Yugi 7000, Illidan 8000)

Drawing a new card, Illidan examined it momentarily before saying "It's time I turned up the intensity of this duel! I play the spell Premature Burial. To activate it, I pay 800 life points, but now I'm allowed to special summon one monster from my Graveyard and equip this card to it. I think it's time I brought an old friend back, so rise up once more Cyber Dragon (2100/1600)."

Reappearing onto the field, the mechanical snake like dragon took to the field and let out a mechanical roar.

"Next, I play Polymerization! This spell let's me fuse together my Cyber Dragon on the field with the one in my hand and The Light – Hex-Sealed Fusion (1000/1600) to form Cyber End Dragon (4000/2800)!"

Materializing onto the field beside of the single machine dragon was another machine dragon along with a round rock like creature with one arm and emitting light. The three creatures immediately began swirling together, forming a bright light. From the light, a large three headed machine snake like dragon with large metallic wings and a long tail then appeared. It had some lights running up and down the side of each dragon's head, along with a set of large green lights on the corner of the inner part of the dragon's wings. On the dragon's chest, right below where the head had connected, was a large green light as well. The three headed dragon roared loudly with a machine growl.

"Impressive dragon Illidan." Yugi simply stated.

"Thanks, but I'm not done this turn." Illidan slyly replied. "I play the spell Card of Sanctity, which let's us both draw till we're holding six cards. Since neither of us have any cards in our hands that means we both pick up six cards, so good luck."

Together, the pair drew six cards, each examining their new hands. Finally satisfied, Illidan called out "I continue my move by removing from my Graveyard Apprentice Magician and The Unhappy Maiden, which lets me special summon this, an old friend, Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning (3000/2500)!"

Placing the monster card onto his Duel Disk, Illidan watched while his black ebony armored warrior emerged onto the field. In his right hand was a powerful sword, and in his left was a strong shield. Stretching out, the soldier let out a small battle cry.

"I'm far from done yet, for I next play this, my Silent Magician LV4 (1000/1000)!"

Materializing onto the field was a very young mage with light brown eyes and silver hair, dressed in white and blue robes, holding a small white staff.

"He maybe a young mage, but he's about to hit a growth spurt thanks to this spell, my Level Up! My mage now jumps up a level, from his current form to Silent Magician LV8 (3500/1000)!"

Glowing momentarily, the young mage suddenly started growing in height. His boyish features melted away to adult features, including well toned muscles that were formed within the blue body suit underneath of his robes.

"Here we go! Cyber End Dragon, send Valkyrion on a one way trip to the recycling bin with Super Strident Blaze!"

Each head of the mechanical dragon roared loudly and took aim upon the magnet creature. Opening their jaws together, the dragons' mouths began to fill with white energy. Together, the three fired a stream of white energy, which combined into one single stream. The single stream tore through the magnet creature easily, making it cry out before exploding into millions of pieces.

"One down, two to go. Black Luster Soldier, attack Summoned Skull with Chaos Slash!"

Letting out a ferocious battle cry, the warrior in black ebony armor rushed forward with his sword held out away from his body. Upon reaching the white skull creature, he made a diagonal slash on the creature, cutting the creature from one shoulder to it's hip. All the skull creature could do was cry out in pain and fall apart, but before either half hit the ground it's body exploded into millions of pieces.

"Thanks to my warrior's successful attack, his special ability kicks in, allowing me to attack a second time with him, so take out his Dark Magician!"

Still standing near where the white skull creature had once stood, the soldier turned to the purple armored mage, who readied himself for battle. Bringing his sword in front of his body, the warrior let out a battle cry and made a slash at the mage, who used his staff to block. Unfortunately for the purple armored mage, his staff wasn't strong enough to withstand the strike and broke, allowing the warrior to pierce the mage, instantly destroying the mage.

"Now you're defenseless, so go take a chunk out of his life points Silent Magician!"

Nodding, the white mage leapt into the air and aimed his staff at Yugi, who only smirked.

Pointing at his face down card, Yugi called out "I'm not that easy to direct attack Illidan. I activate a trap known as Mirage Ruler! Thanks to this handy trap, I can return all the monsters that you just destroyed to my field, plus return my life points to what I had when the turn started."

Reappearing onto the field from small ripples was the magnet creature, along with the purple armored mage, and finally the white skull creature. At the same time, Yugi's life point counter increased.

Frowning, Illidan sighed, saying "Very well, you may have brought back all three of your monsters, but one is still going away."

After a moment of deciding, he called out "Silent Magician, take out Summoned Skull with Silent Scepter Blast!"

Aiming his staff, the white robed mage fired a sphere of white energy from his scepter straight at the white bone creature. The blast made the creature howl out in pain, but soon vanished in a thunderous explosion. With the smoke settling, Illidan lightly smirked at his handiwork.

"I place a card face down to end my move." (Yugi 6000, Illidan 7200)


	70. Chapter 70: Card of Fate, Pt 2

**Hello everyone. Well, it's a day before Christmas, aka Christmas Eve, and everything is cool. Later today, me and my mate are off to see my grandparents (mom's side), which should be fun. Grandpa gets out of the hospital later today, which is good, meaning he'll be home time we visit. It sucks that my mom didn't get to come in this weekend, but I'm more thankful that she's alive than anything. She got in a car accident Thursday, and the front end of her car was pretty much ruined. She's very lucky really that the driver hit her front end and not her driver's side door. Anyways, she's fine. She said she had a concussion, but the doctor at the ER took care of her. Lol, her car though, well, it's not going to have a very Merry Christmas. The engine from what she told me was steaming and spewing liquids at the accident scent, thus saying it was totaled. At any rate, she's fine and decided not to come till next weekend, which is cool and all. On Christmas, I'm to go to my grandma's (dad's side) and celebrate with his family. Once my mate gets off of work at 2, I'm going back to my dad's house and have dinner there with her (she's meeting me there). Other than that, this weekend has been cool. Heh, I built a new deck to take on my mate, while she modified her own. I bought the recent structure deck and cannibalized it, taking what I needed for my own deck. Me and my mate tested out our decks, with me winning the sets thus far. Heh, we had a fun set tonight, in which I didn't think I'd win with very much on the line. But that's more of a MA rated story, hehe.**

**Story wise, I'm working on both **_**Another**_** and **_**MtM**_**, but I had a slow weekend, so not much got done. Oh well, I have tomorrow morning and some of Tuesday. We'll see, hehe.**

**Last time, Yugi arrived on the island to find Illidan and tell him he had a card for him, only to tell him he had to earn it first. Furious, Illidan decided to not accept the card, but Yugi gave him no choice. Not wanting to waste his time on physically hurting Yugi, Illidan accepted the challenge, with the pair each summoning some of their best monsters quickly. The question is, who will win now?**

**Alright, time to move onto the reviews. I see some new faces in them, which is always a bonus. Ok, let's do this!**

**DuelistBlake1852: Wow, I'm glad you've been a fan for so long. It's nice to know that you got to read from the beginning to the current thus far. Heh, yeah, that duel I had with Marie was one of the toughest I think I've ever really had. It'd be in the top three at the least. Ouch, that sounds like a nasty set of duels. But yeah, on with the review, lol. Yes, Yugi is playful at times, but he's loyal and doesn't want to see something happen to Illidan. The card he is dueling for is that important, and it seems Yami wanted Illidan to earn the card. Yes, a ridiculous Yami has to have his way once and a while, lol. Cool that you like Yami/Yugi. The duel did start off with a bang, with each summoning some of their best cards. I'm glad you like the duel thus far. Have a Merry Christmas yourself. Thanks for the review.**

**Nathan: Yep, Metal Overlord's duel is over. Heh, it was interesting, to say the least. Yes, I'll remember my duel with Marie forever and ever. It was one of the toughest I must say. At least it wasn't like that one other duel I can't forget. The one where me and her dueled and I used Scapegoat, then played Sword of the Deep-Seated and Horn of the Unicorn on one of them. Heh, she freaked out when I attacked with it and won the duel, lol. She drew me a card after that called Scapegoat Powered. Lol, it was a Scapegoat with a sword sticking through it and a horn on it's forehead. Very interesting time we had, lol. But anyways, back to the review. Yes, nice to not have a duel to the death. Thanks for the review!**

**Knives91: LOL! You're right, she's stuck in a cave with an insane ancient pedophile, an evil spirit, and a perverted cat, hehe. Couldn't get any worse I suppose… LOL! I do pity him when he finally rescues her. She'll beat the hell out of him for not coming sooner to save her from those weirdo's, lol. Thanks about the dueling, hehe. Yeah, my hidden skills are somewhat rusty though. I haven't dueled anyone (other than my mate) online in… hell, I don't know. Maybe 2 years, or so. Heh, I don't even have a deck made for online anymore, lol. But thanks again about the skills. I have enough to subdue mine, apparently due that I won tonight's duel, high stakes and all, hehe. Thanks for the review, and glad the review ninja approves, lol.**

**pink-kiss-candy: That looked painful, lol. Need those popped back on?**

**sweetortonlover86: Why thank you, and I'm glad you've enjoyed my stories thus far. Btw, thank you very much for pointing out my error. I had no idea I had used the wrong card name. I knew which card I wanted, but put the wrong one in. Thank you very much again for pointing that out, and I have gone back and corrected it. Don't worry, the next story will be great too! Has to be with me getting help for it, lol. Thank you for the review.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: That was a rather climatic ending there. Nicely done. Yes, duels are harder to write than you think they are. Over time, you get better and better at it. Lol, I know I do so much description anymore that I ponder if I'm getting the card's image through to people still. Yugi's deck is a bit like his **_**ToP**_** deck, but then again, I just used the same deck he had for most of the show. Yes, the new card sounds interesting. Thanks for the review, and Merry Christmas to you also.**

**Ok, that's it for the reviews everyone. Thank you all for your thoughts, remarks, and so on. They're very helpful, and thank you very much sweetortonlover86 for pointing out my mistake. I had no idea I had done it till you mentioned it. Heh, I proofread the chapters before I post, but I didn't catch that error. Thank you for pointing it out. But again, everyone, thank you for the reviews. And to the two new reviewers, thanks a lot for your reviews.**

**Next time you guys will see me post again will be Christmas Day for my Christmas chapter. That's right, there are 4 chapters this week, so yay, lol. But anyways, I hope you all enjoy Christmas Eve and have a Merry Christmas. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 70**

Picking up a new card, Yugi smiled, saying "That was a nice move Illidan. By the way, thank you."

Puzzled, Illidan asked "Thanks for what?"

"You spared Dark Magician last turn. You could have taken him out instead of Summoned Skull." Yugi responded.

Nodding, Illidan smiled and replied "True, I could have, but he is your favorite. Besides, your Summoned Skull could have been trouble as well."

"I guess so." Yugi remarked. "Still, you may regret that move. I play these two equip spell cards and use them on Dark Magician. The first being Book of Secret Arts, raising his attack and defense points by 300 (2500 + 300 2800/2100 + 300 2400). Next is my Magic Formula, which grants Dark Magician another 500 attack points (2800 + 500 3300/2400)!"

The two spell cards appeared in front of mage and began transferring multicolored energies into his body, making the mage slightly cry out before giving a stronger sound.

"I'm not through yet, for I have another spell, this one called Dark Magic Attack! With Dark Magician on my field, this card destroys all of your spell and trap cards!"

Pointing his staff into the air, the purple armored mage gave out a small cry as green energy shot out in a streak of energy. The streak hit Illidan's face down card, shattering it upon impact.

Growling lowly, Illidan muttered "There goes Spellbinding Circle…"

Pointing at his magnet creature, Yugi called out "Next, I activate Valkyrion's special ability, so separate to form my three Magnet Warriors (1400/1700) (1700/1600) (1500/1800)!"

The large magnet creature let out a small groan and began glowing. Upon glowing, three separate beams were fired, making the large creature vanish. In his place, three smaller magnet creatures, with one being grey, another yellow, and the last being pink, took the field, each showing signs of ready to fight.

"Time to take that dragon of yours down, and to do that, I play the spell Brave Attack! Alpha, go, attack his Cyber End Dragon!"

Letting out a small mechanical moan, the grey magnet creature with a sword leapt into the air towards the three headed dragon.

"But it's too weak." Illidan stated.

Ignoring the comment, the grey magnet creature struck the machine dragon, leaving a slash mark on the dragon's neck, before exploding.

"Beta, you're up next!" Yugi declared.

The yellow magnet creature simply leapt into the air and punched the same spot where the grey magnet monster had slashed, and like it's friend, exploded upon impact.

"I don't understand what you're up to Yugi." Illidan calmly said.

Smirking, Yugi replied "I'm beating your dragon. Haven't you noticed that large scratch on it's neck?"

Looking at his machine dragon, Illidan frowned, asking "Why does it have that scratch? Your Magnet Warriors shouldn't be able to do that."

"That's right, they shouldn't, but my spell card lets them." Yugi remarked. "You see, the attack points of each of my Magnet Warriors is added together, allowing them to in essence attack as one monster. So far, I've let Alpha and Beta attack, with a total strength of 3100. Only one more monster should be needed to bring down your dragon, and that's what I have left. Gamma, take it to him!"

Lurching forward, the pink magnet creature let out a small moan. With it's right arm extended, it punched the large mechanical dragon but exploded on impact. After the explosion, the large mechanical dragon roared out in pain and blew up in a thunderous explosion of it's own, throwing smoke and debris throughout the field, forcing Illidan to cover his face from the explosion.

Once the smoke settled, Illidan glared at Yugi, but his expression softened. "Nicely executed there Yugi. Are you done?"

Smiling, Yugi replied "About. I'm at least done battling. Now then, I activate my Magnet Reverse spell card. With it, I can bring back one Rock or Machine Type monster back to the field in defense mode that was sent to the Graveyard this turn, so I pick Valkyrion the Magna Warrior (3500/3850)."

Re-emerging onto the field, the large combo magnet creature took a kneeling position onto the field.

"I'll place these two cards face down. Now give me your best shot." (Yugi 6000, Illidan 6600)

"My best, eh?" Illidan taunted. Picking up a card, he smirked, saying "Well then, here it is. I activate Black Luster Soldier's special ability. Instead of attacking this turn, he can remove a monster from play, and I pick your Valkyrion!"

Pointing his shield at the large magnet creature, the warrior began building up energy within the shield. Within moments, the shield was glowing light blue and ready to fire. Without hesitation, the warrior released a stream of light blue energy at the magnet creature.

Seeing it coming, Yugi smirked, saying "It's not that easy Illidan, for I have a trap! Go Magnet Force!"

Just as the blast was about to hit the large magnet creature, a rippling effect appeared to stop the beam in it's tracks, making it hold it's position.

"Thanks to my trap, when a Rock or Machine Type monster on my field is targeted by a monster effect, I can redirect the blast to a monster on your field, and I choose to redirect this blast straight at your Silent Magician!"

With that said, the blast suddenly launched forward once more, but this time at the white robed mage. The blast hit the mage, who cried out in pain. After a moment or two, he began to fade away till nothing was left of him.

Growling with frustration, Illidan said "Very well then Yugi, I play this, my Rapid-Fire Magician (1600/1200) in defense mode."

A mage with long flowing purple hair, a black pair of leather pants, a short sleeved cloak with black flowing cloak, an odd black hat, and two black finger cut off gloves then appeared. In each hand he held a staff with bird like claws, which clutched small orbs. To top it all off, around nine different colored spheres formed an arch around him. Once fully on the field, the mage took a defensive crouching stance.

"I end my turn." (Yugi 6000, Illidan 6600)

Nodding, Yugi drew his next card and lightly smirked. "I start things off by playing the equip spell Dark Spear, which goes straight to my Dark Magician."

The large green staff in the purple armored mage's hands suddenly changed into a long green spear, which he swung out into an offensive stance.

"With the power of Dark Spear, Dark Magician can now deal damage to your monsters even when they're in defense. The difference in his attack points and your monster's defense points are dealt to you directly."

"Trample…" Illidan darkly muttered as a drop of sweat rolled down his forehead.

"That's right." Yugi responded with a nod. "Next, I switch Valkyrion into attack mode."

Standing up, the magnet creature stretched it's wings and arms out and took up an offensive stance.

"Valkyrion, take his Black Luster Soldier down with Magna Slash!"

Letting out a loud moan, the magnet creature launched it's body forward. Pulling it's sword out to the right side of it's body, the creature prepared to strike. Upon moving into range, the magnet creature slashed the warrior in black ebony armor straight across the chest, easily destroying the warrior.

Seeing Illidan's light growl, Yugi called out "Dark Magician, take his Rapid-Fire Magician out now!"

Launching into the air, the purple armored mage let out a battle cry and came down upon the weaker mage. Before anyone could blink, the large green spear was thrust through the weaker mage, making him lightly gasp out in pain before exploding, making Illidan cover his face lightly.

"I end my move." (Yugi 6000, Illidan 4000)

Drawing his next card, Illidan examined it momentarily before saying "I play the spell Mirage of Nightmare. This lets me draw till I hold four cards during your Standby Phase, but during my Standby Phase, I have to discard the same number I drew from my hand. I'll also set one card face down, and summon Royal Magical Library (0/2000) in defense."

A large octagon like building with a doorway in the front part of the building that was open, revealing the inside had several levels. At each level was a shelf, which incased many books. Also on the levels, there was a piece of flooring sticking out with a place to stand, as well as a table for sitting at. The flooring was held up by green spheres, which appeared to be small antigravity engines, which kept the flooring aloft.

"Go ahead and give me your best shot." Illidan calmly stated. (Yugi 6000, Illidan 4000)

Picking up his new card, Yugi lightly smirked, saying in a taunting voice "You want my best, then here you go!"

"Not quite yet! You haven't forgotten my Mirage of Nightmare have you? I haven't, so I get to draw four new cards now."

Grabbing four cards at once, Illidan examined them before saying "I'm not through either, for I activate my face down card, Emergency Provisions! Thanks to this spell, I can send a spell or trap card from my field to the Grave and gain 1000 life points, so farewell Mirage of Nightmare. And since it's gone now, next turn I won't have to discard."

Yugi smiled at this and commented "Nice strategy Illidan, but it won't be enough to save your life points. Dark Magician, attack his Royal Magical Library!"

Leaping into the air, the mage came flying back down towards the ground at an alarmingly fast amount of speed. Pushing his spear forward, the mage rammed it roughly into the building, easily puncturing it. Once he pulled his spear out, the building crumbled to the ground, leaving nothing behind but smoke.

"I'm not done yet Illidan. Valkyrion, direct attack!"

Letting out a mechanical battle cry, the large magnet creature launched it's body across the field. With a swift motion, the large magnet creature slashed Illidan across the chest, making Illidan slide backwards and fall to one knee and begin panting heavily.

"I shall place a face down card to end my turn." (Yugi 6000, Illidan 200)

Watching Illidan panting heavily, Yugi said "You know, you can quit."

Standing up on shaky legs, Illidan shook his head in a no motion, saying "I don't quit!"

Closing his eyes and taking a few deep breaths, he steadied out his breathing finally. Reopening his eyes, he quickly drew a card and examined it.

Lightly smirking at the card, Illidan calmly said "Here goes! I play the spell Chaos Revisited! To play this card, I must first give up half of my life points. Next, I can special summon any monster with the word 'Chaos' or 'Envoy' in it's name from my deck, hand, Graveyard, or removed from play pile. I choose from my Graveyard, so rise up once more Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning (3000/2500)!"

Rematerializing onto the field was the warrior in black ebony armor with his sword and shield raised for battle.

"Next, I remove from my Graveyard my Rapid-Fire Magician and The Light – Hex-Sealed Fusion in order to special summon my Chaos Emperor Dragon – Envoy of the End (3000/2500)!"

Letting out a massive roar while appearing, a large black dragon with an orange mane, massive black wings, strong arms and legs, a powerful tail, and sharp clawed hands and feet made it's entrance to the field.

Smirking lightly, Yugi calmly said "Nice monsters so far, but none of them have the strength to defeat my Dark Magician or Valkyrion."

Nodding, Illidan remarked "True, but I'm not done yet. I have one last monster to summon. First though, I play a field spell known as Chaos Control!"

Holding his Duel Disk vertical, Illidan tapped the end of the blade, causing a new slot to open. Placing the card within the slot, it closed and the Duel Disk glowed momentarily. Instantly, the sky above the field began to darken even more than it had previously. Lightning began flashing throughout the sky, and a single cave surrounded by wasteland appeared onto the field.

"Thanks to my field spell, I can now special summon one monster with the word 'Chaos' or 'Envoy' in it's name to the field once per a turn from my deck, hand, Graveyard, or removed from play pile. So, to start things off, I pick my Dark Magician of Chaos (2800/2600) from my deck!"

Lightning without warning struck the field in between the large black dragon and the black ebony armored warrior. From the strike, a figure slowly rose up from a kneeling position. The figure had tight fitting black leather armor, a strange mage's hat, a black staff in his hands. The only part of the figure that showed skin was his face, which appeared to have some kind of black markings on it. His skin was blue, and he had strange eyes with yellow corneas and red irises.

"When Dark Magician of Chaos is special summoned, allowed to add one spell card from my Graveyard to my hand, so I pick Pot of Greed."

Picking up the spell card as it slid out of his Duel Disk's Graveyard Slot, Illidan returned it to his hand. Pointing at Yugi, Illidan calmly stated "It's time to end this duel, once and for all Yugi. I activate Chaos Control's special ability. When I have three Chaos monsters on my field, I can send Chaos Control to the Graveyard in order to destroy all monsters on your field. Say farewell to your monsters!"

Lightning began striking the field more and more violently. A streak suddenly struck the large magnet creature, making it moan out in great agony. Arcs of lightning began forming closer and closer to the purple armored mage, who only kept looking around, trying to guess where the strikes would happen.

With only moments before the next strike would hit, Yugi cried out "I'm not through with this duel yet Illidan, for I activate the trap Dark Illusion!"

The next strike hit the ground where the purple mage stood, but a purple defensive barrier appeared around the mage, keeping him safe from the strike.

"Thanks to Dark Illusion, my Dark Magician can't be harmed by spell, trap, or monster effects till the end of this turn. So, you can't beat me, not just yet." Yugi smugly said.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan wagged a finger at Yugi, saying "Not quite. You see, Chaos Control has one other special ability. When sent to the Graveyard by using it's destructive force, I can direct attack your life points with each of my Chaos monsters. That means you lose."

Yugi only stared wide-eyed, his mouth hanging open in surprise. "I… I can't believe it." he mumbled in shock.

"Well, start believing, cause here come my monsters! Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning, Dark Magician of Chaos, and Chaos Emperor Dragon – Envoy of the End, let's end this! Direct attack!"

Leaping onto action, all three monsters took to the air. The first to strike with his sword slashing was the black ebony armored warrior, who struck Yugi across the chest with his sword, making him grunt out in pain. Next up, the black armored mage pointed his staff at Yugi and released a black sphere of energy at him, striking him hard and making his knees slightly buckle. Last up, the large black dragon reared it's head back and released a blast of black flaming energy. The blast hit Yugi head on, knocking him completely to his hands and knees.

With the last blast, Yugi's life points dropped to zero, causing the holograms to begin to fade on the field. Before fading away completely, the purple armored mage smiled at the three black creatures on Illidan's field, saying "_I believe in you three. Make us all proud._"

The three in correlation nodded back. The four monsters completely faded from the field then, causing both Duel Disks to power down.

Walking over to a smoking Yugi, Illidan offered a friendly hand. Smiling graciously back, Yugi took hold and stood back up with Illidan's help.

"Good duel Illidan. I see you haven't lost your edge over the last few years." Yugi said with a smile.

Smiling back, Illidan calmly replied "And I see you haven't lost yours either."

"Now then, since you beat me, I owe you a card." Yugi kindly said.

Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a small card holder and opened it. Inside was a single card. Taking it out, he handed it to Illidan, saying "There you are."

Examining the card, Illidan frowned, asking "This is it?"

"Yes, this is it." Yugi reiterated.

Placing the card into his deck, Illidan sighed, saying "I figured the card would have more to it than that. Yami said I needed it, right?"

"He said you would most definitely need it. It could be what tips fate into your corner. You never know." Yugi remarked.

Sighing, Illidan nodded, saying "True. Thank you for bringing me the card. Maybe now I can worry a little less about Marie."

"Marie?"

Looking at the ground, Illidan mumbled "Zell has her."

"Oh, I see. Don't worry Illidan, it will work out." Yugi consoled.

"I hope so. I'll do whatever it takes to save her. I promised to protect her with my life, and I intend to do that if necessary." Illidan calmly stated.

Staring at Illidan, Yugi kindly replied "Don't give up your life if not necessary. You know she would die without you."

"If she could live on, I'd do it." Illidan remarked calmly. Slightly smiling, Illidan continued on, saying wistfully "Besides, there are two people that love you very much that you need to go see."

Frowning, Yugi nodded. With sadness in his voice, he replied "I know. I hate being away from Tea and Yoshi, but as long as there is a threat still out here, I have to do it."

"I wish there was another way Yugi. I hope one day there is no need for you to ever have to stay gone." Illidan kindly said while placing a hand on Yugi's shoulder.

Sighing, Yugi nodded, saying "Yeah, me too. For now though, I will do what I must. It is my responsibility."

"Don't worry, it'll end one day."

Weakly nodding his head, Yugi simply responded with "Yeah…"

Looking up once more, he glanced at the position of the sun and said "I need to go. You have your own things to prepare for."

"Thank you Yugi." Illidan kindly said and bowed. "And, I apologize for …"

Shaking his head, Yugi interrupted, saying "No need to. I understand. You wanted to prepare for your upcoming battle. I just hope this card helps you win it."

"I do too."

"Stay safe Illidan." Yugi calmly stated while turning away.

"You too Yugi. Till next time." Illidan said with a wave.

Watching Yugi walk away towards the docks, Illidan lightly sighed. "_Marie… I promise, I will save you, no matter what happens._"


	71. Chapter 71: Demons and Anubis, Pt 1

**Merry Christmas everyone! Christmas Eve was pretty cool. I went and saw my grandmother and grandfather, who was home from the hospital. My mom and sister were in too (they came Sunday). We had a great time and a good dinner, and afterwards opened presents. My grandmother was very touched by the presents, and she received a few from mom and my sister who did the shopping for our grandfather. Like we all agreed, he's still here, and are all very thankful for that. After that, we took some presents into grandpa, who opened them. Lol, he didn't like the color of the shirt I got him, but changed his tune and said he did. Anyways, mom had him give granny a present she had picked up for him to granny, who was very happy with it. She got a card, but didn't read it due that she didn't think she could with us there. He also signed her card, and wrote her name on a present. Needless to say, it was emotional for her today, lol. Once we got home, me and my mate opened our presents, with her being rather happy with her gifts. Christmas Eve has been fun, and I look forward to the rest of Christmas.**

**Story wise, me and ardee are hammering out details still for **_**MtM**_**. Things are moving along, with us planning out duels and the plot. Also, **_**Another**_** is still slowly moving forward. Things are going great with my stories, although I'd love to write more than I do. (/Sighs\) Life just gets in the way though. Oh well.**

**Last time, Illidan concluded his duel with Yugi, winning the card that was entrusted to him. Now Illidan prepares to face his toughest challenge yet, one that maybe even insurmountable to him. Can he end the swaft of destruction that Legato has begun, or will Illidan lose his life saving Marie?**

**Alright, now let's move on! That's right, review time!**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Lol, no problem for the postal problem. (/Slaps you on back hard, knocking you through five walls.\) (/Innocently says "Oops, don't know my own strength."\) Oh yeah, sorry for not answering your review last time. I somehow overlooked it, although I'm unsure how.**

**Knives91: Thanks for the review.**

**DuelistBlake1852: Yeah, Yugi lost his duel, but Illidan had to win in order to have a shot at beating Legato. Perhaps his loss is helpful? I know, they're your favorites, but favorites lose sometimes… Lol, a long list of favs, sounds like fun. I did base Illidan and Marie a bit off of myself and my mate, although they get along better, lol. Kidding of course though, for me and my mate get along fine. If I ever get through the stack of fics I have to read, I'll try to read yours. Lol, I have one fic that I'm like 20 or 30 chapters behind on. I'm hoping to catch up someday… maybe, lol. Thanks for the review!**

**pink-kiss-candy: Lol, don't worry, we'll get those arms put back in. (/Puts 2 sticks in in place of your old hands.\) Snowman hands are very handy, lol. Good question there Ryon. Thanks for the review.**

**Ok, that's it this time for reviews. Thanks everyone for your reviews. They're much appreciated. I hope everyone enjoys this bonus Christmas chapter. From both me and my mate, have a Merry Christmas everyone. Till tomorrow, enjoy!**

**Chapter 71**

Slowly walking back to his home upon receiving his new card, Illidan lightly sighed and glanced up at the cliffs facing the sea. Looking there, he saw Jaden sitting on them, seemingly fixated on the sea.

Adjusting his direction, Illidan came up beside of Jaden and took a seat, asking "Something interesting out there?"

Lightly smiling, Jaden shook his head and said "Nah, I just wanted to sit and think."

"Yeah, I know the feeling. I've done a lot of that recently." Illidan admitted.

A small bit of silence came over the pair. After a few moments, Illidan decided to break the awkward silence and seriously said "Jaden, I want you to promise me something."

Hearing the seriousness in Illidan's voice, Jaden turned to Illidan and asked "What?"

Letting out a long breath that he had held for a moment, Illidan calmly said "Jaden, if something happens to me, I …"

"Nothing is going to happen to you." Jaden sternly said.

Sadly smiling, Illidan continued on, saying "Jaden, if something does, I want you to …"

"No, nothing is going to happen to you!" Jaden reiterated with increasing sternness in his voice.

Sighing, Illidan looked away from Jaden's serious face. "We don't know that for sure." he murmured.

Softening his expression, Jaden soothingly said "Illidan, you have to believe that you can do this. Think back to all the great battles you've been in. Did you ever think like this?"

Taking a moment to ponder Jaden's words, Illidan finally shook his head, saying "No, I never did I guess. I've always had hope and knew that no matter what, I couldn't give up, and that I had to win to save the people I cared about."

"Then do that in this fight. To save Marie, you have to have that kind of hope! So please, don't say things like if something happens to you. You never just said you never did before, so don't start now."

Sighing, Illidan softly smiled and replied "Thank you, I needed that. I guess I've been thinking too much about Marie's dream that I forgot the future isn't set. There is no fate but what we create."

"That's right Illidan. So, how about we go and get Marie back then?"

Smiling, Illidan stood up and said "Yes, let's go get her back."

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"It is time to take what my Legendary Demons need from the Egyptian Gods." Legato coolly said aloud.

Appearing beside of Legato in spirit form, Zell asked "_Master, shall I be the one to take them for you?_"

Sneering, Legato calmly replied "No, for I have no need for you anymore."

Shocked, the spirit form stepped back from Legato, exclaiming "_WHAT!? But Master…_"

"But nothing! You have failed me too many times, and I have all that I want from you." Legato calmly remarked. Raising his hand, Legato turned it towards Zell's spirit form and evilly smirked.

"Now, be gone!"

Screaming out in pain, Zell's spiritual form began vanishing bit by bit. Small wisps of smoke began pouring off of his body till finally he vanished completely.

Laughing manically, Legato coolly said "So much for that fool. Now I won't be bothered by him again. It is time to end this game with Illidan."

Going to the back where Marie was held, Legato sneered at her quiet form. "Completely helpless I see." he commented.

Lifting her head lightly, Marie glared daggers at Legato. Laughing at this, Legato pulled her off the wall and threw her over his shoulder. Grabbing Pharaoh as well, and a box that he had laid near the door that was locked, Legato left the cave.

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Upon getting the others up and ready, the group of four began walking towards where the Sacred Beasts had appeared the year before. Silence hung over the group like a dark cloud.

Finally breaking the silence, Alexis asked "Is this the battle to end it all, one way or another?"

"More than likely." Illidan calmly replied.

"Too bad. We'll have to do homework again once this is over." Chazz remarked.

The group all laughed at the comment, breaking the anxiousness.

"Just don't expect me to make the final tests easy on you guys." Illidan comically added.

Sighing, Jaden replied "But they're hard enough already!"

Laughing once more as a group, they looked ahead, only to stop laughing. There at the spot where the Sacred Beasts had rose up the year before was a person.

Moving closer, the group figured out the person standing there was Zell, although he looked different.

"Zell, I see you made it." Illidan coolly said.

Sneering, the person replied "I am no longer Zell. Only I, Legato, remain in this body."

"I see. Heh, I didn't figure you'd keep him forever. Besides, what was the deal? You give him power and then take his body?" Illidan mused.

Darkly chuckling, Legato remarked "Something like that. After all, I couldn't give someone like that loose cannon power and expect anything out of him. You see, when I first met Zell, I knew then and there he'd be troublesome. So, I decided to test him by sending him to battle you. Instead, he fought Set and Yami, who showed they were together stronger than Zell."

Smirking, Legato continued on, saying "I needed a body, but to get that, I needed Zell. So, I promised him my power. Over the last five millennia, I gave it to him, but secretly, I was making sure I would be strong enough to take his body for my own. Today, I finally achieved my goal. I have fully vanquished Zell from this body, making it my own."

"Doubtful. Each and every spirit I have known that have tried to fully vanquish the soul of the person whose body they inhabited were never fully successful. The original soul of the person cannot fully be extinguished." Illidan countered.

Once more smirking, Legato coolly replied "Perhaps, but Zell is not strong enough to get rid of me now. He will forever be my vessel."

"What have you done with Marie?" Illidan pointed asked.

"Ah, so you wish to get down to business? Well, take a look for yourself." Legato remarked while pointing at the obelisk that suddenly came shooting out of the ground.

Looking at the obelisk, Illidan saw Marie tied to it, along with Pharaoh. "Marie!"

Starting to run off towards her, Illidan was stopped immediately by a barrier. Turning to Legato, Illidan coldly said "Let her go now! This fight is between me and you!"

When he didn't receive a response, Illidan's Shadow Powers began to flare up. Clenching his right hand, he hunched over and began gathering energy within his left hand, making sparks of Shadow Magic lick the palm of his hand.

"Ah, that technique again. Shadow Blade, wasn't it? I'm impressed that you learned such a difficult technique. I bet you picked it up from a descendant of the Kirin clan." Legato stated.

Somewhat shocked at Legato's claim, Illidan lost his focus and powered down his Shadow Powers. "You knew they were Kirin descendants?"

Sneering, Legato replied "Of course I did. After all, I was alive when the clans still existed."

Illidan's thoughts turned inwards, trying to remember what Squall had once told him. "_While living with the nomads, I remember Squall telling me about the heritage of the nomads, how they once served as guardians for Egypt. That was till one member of a different clan destroyed everything by betraying Egypt. Once he had, the clans were forced to go into hiding, thus becoming nomads. But which clan was that one clan member from? I know the answer, but it's not in my mind at the moment._"

"I'm sure you don't know of me, but I was of the Bluesummers clan, and last of the guardians that protected Egypt." Legato stated, breaking Illidan out of his thoughts.

Glowering at Legato, Illidan coldly remarked "I see. You're the one that ruined everything for all the clans."

Laughing, Legato smirked and asked "Ruined? Surely you jest. I freed us from the oppression of the pharaoh of that time. I only realized that the weak should not rule the strong. That is why I wish to continue what I began back then."

"By destroying everything and everyone!?" Illidan yelled with anger in his voice.

Sneering, Legato simply remarked "The weak shall not rule any longer. Once you hand over the Egyptian God Cards to me, the Legendary Demons shall be complete, and I shall fix this world."

"Who said I was going to just hand them over?" Illidan asked in a challenging voice.

"If you wish to save your wife, you will do it." Legato coldly replied.

Boldly, Illidan remarked "I have a better proposition for you. You hand over the antidote for Marie, along with the Sacred Beast Cards, and release everyone you've sent to the Shadow Realm and leave while you still can."

"Interesting proposition, but no. I will have your Egyptian God Cards, along with Marie." Legato countered.

Bristling up with anger, Illidan growled out "You will not have Marie!"

"We'll see. After all, we are the only two of mighty clans left. It only figures that we come together to form a new clan." Legato coolly replied.

Frowning, Illidan asked "What do you mean the only two of mighty clans left? Marie isn't from a clan."

"Ah, but she has the blood of a Kirin within her. Haven't you pondered why she is so strong when her hidden strength emerges? That power is from her Kirin heritage. Of course, her blood is so muddied up that she cannot maintain it, but children from a coupling of me and her would be extremely strong."

"She would rather die that be with you!" Illidan snapped out.

Sneering, Legato remarked "That will happen if she fails to agree. I hate to waste such loveliness, but I will if she refuses me."

Pausing for a moment, Legato stared at Illidan, saying "I give you this one and only opportunity Illidan. Join me in bringing about a new world order. Even though you are not strong as me and Marie, your power would be welcomed."

"Don't do it Illidan!" Jaden called out, calling attention to the group of three students.

"He'll just use you!" Alexis added in.

"Yeah, and then we'll have a real mess." Chazz muttered darkly.

Glancing over his shoulder at the group, Illidan smiled and said "Don't worry."

Turning his attention back to Legato, he calmly replied "No thanks. Me and Marie won't be helping you, so cut her loose now."

Shrugging, Legato coolly replied "I figured you'd say that. Well then, I have no choice but to destroy you."

"I have a better idea. You want these Egyptian God Cards badly, right?"

Smirking, Legato nodded, saying "I do, and I think I know what you have planned, so allow me to finish. We duel for the cards. How about it, me and you…"

"And me!" Jaden added while running up to Illidan's side.

Turning to Jaden quickly, Illidan began to say something, but Legato was quick to say "Very well then, it shall be two on one. I shall take both of you on at once."

"Wait, Legato, no…" Illidan began.

"No, I want to help Illidan! Marie needs help, so I want to help. Please, let me do this with you." Jaden remarked with confidence in his eyes.

Sighing, Illidan looked towards Marie's direction and finally said "Very well, but be careful."

"Right." Jaden acknowledged.

"I believe I shall make the rules simple. The two of you will have 4000 life points each, while I have 8000 to start off with. Also, during your two's first turn, neither of you can attack. Finally, the turns shall go Illidan, followed by Jaden, and finally myself. Sound reasonable?" Legato mocked.

Both Illidan and Jaden nodded in response, allowing Legato to continue. "Oh yes, one other thing. Only one of you may have an Egyptian God Card in your deck. I don't care which Egyptian God Card you use either. The other three though, they shall be kept in this."

Holding up a small lock box with a set of life point counters on it, Legato placed it onto the middle of the field.

"I shall place the cure to the poison in Marie's body within the box, so long as you two place the three Egyptian God Cards within it as well."

Looking to Chazz and Alexis, Illidan asked "Will you two agree to place your Egyptian God Cards in there?"

"For a chance to save Marie, of course." Alexis kindly said.

Grumbling, Chazz said "Fine, but don't lose."

After a moment the two pulled out their Egyptian God Cards. Jaden already had his in hand even before the two did. Collecting all three, Illidan walked over to where Legato stood with the box. Opening the box, the three cards were placed within, as well as a small vile filled with some liquid. Once the lid as closed, the two life point counters activated, each reading 8000 points.

"Why does the box say 8000 points for each counter?" Jaden asked, unsure of what the two counters really meant for.

"Each counter is set to our life points. When one counter hits zero, the box shall open once more. That will happen when I take both of you down that is." Legato smoothly said.

Lightly growling, Illidan remarked "I wouldn't count on it. When we win, we'll get Marie's cure, the Sacred Beasts, and you'll release the souls you took."

Chuckling, Legato quickly countered with "And when you two lose, I shall inherit the Egyptian God Cards, making my dream of destroying this world a reality."

"We shall see." Illidan coolly responded.

Glancing at Marie once more, Illidan silently said in his mind "_Hang on a little longer Marie. I promise, I'll get you out of this mess, or I'll go down fighting to. Please, just hold on._"

"I'd pay attention to me if I were you." Legato remarked, breaking Illidan's thought patterns and forcing him to look back at Legato.

Growling softly, Illidan calmly said "You will pay for what you've done to her. I swear it, she will be free of your control soon enough."

"Really. Then show me." Legato replied, holding out his arm and powering up his Duel Disk.

Both Illidan and Jaden did the same, with Illidan glancing at Jaden, asking "Ready for this?"

Returning his answer with a nod, Jaden remarked "I'm more than ready. Let's put an end to this guy."

Smirking at Jaden's remark, Illidan looked at his deck, hoping it would give him what he needed. Calling on his Shadow Powers, he closed his eyes and began to seek out the Duel Spirits of his most faithful monsters.

In his mind, the mage in black tight fitting armor, along with the black ebony armored warrior, the powerful black dragon with an orange mane, and the purple skinned mage in black leather armor all four appeared before him.

Smiling at the four, Illidan calmly said "_Guys, this battle will be one of the most grueling we've had._"

Taking the initiative for the group, the mage in black tight fitting armor kindly said "_Master Illidan, we are always with you, and we will help you defeat this person. He has threatened the ones you love, not to mention one of the people we swore to always help you protect. You have our full support._"

"_Thank you. I promise, we will defeat Legato!_" Illidan remarked.

Opening his eyes once more, Illidan said "Jaden, let's do this together. I know as a team, we can win."

"Right on Illidan. Let's do it!" Jaden quickly replied.

Summoning up his Shadow Powers, Legato darkened the field, saying "Let this Shadow Game commence!"

Each drew their first five cards, saying "Game on!"

Drawing his sixth card, Illidan calmly said "I'll start by summoning my Luster Dragon (1900/1600) in attack mode."

A sapphire dragon with bone like wings, powerful clawed hands and feet, a strong tail, and sharp fanged teeth appeared onto the field with a low growl.

"I'll place two cards face down to end my move." (Illidan 4000, Jaden 4000; Legato 8000)

Picking up his sixth card, Jaden smirked, saying "I'll start things out by summoning my Elemental Hero Bubbleman (800/1200)."

In a spray of bubbles, a man in a blue costume outfit with a long white cape, light blue boots, gloves, shoulder pads, and a helmet that covered all but his mouth. On his right wrist was a small gun attached that looked like the end of a water hose, and on his back was a set of water tanks.

"Since Bubbleman is all alone on my field, his effect lets me draw two cards. So, let's see what else I've got for you."

Grabbing two cards, Jaden finally said "I'll throw down a few face downs myself, and call it a turn." (Illidan 4000, Jaden 4000; Legato 8000)

"Not a bad start." Alexis remarked to Chazz.

Nodding in response, Chazz calmly said "I only hope this works out."

"It has to, for Professor Marie's sake." Alexis commented back.

On the field, Legato drew his next card and smirked evilly. "You two should never have challenged me. I'll enjoy tearing both of you apart in this Shadow Game."

"Bring it on." Illidan challengingly said.

Chuckling darkly, Legato remarked "Oh, I shall. I start by playing the field spell Fallen Paradise."

Holding his Duel Disk vertical, Legato tapped the end of his Duel Disk, which opened. Placing a card within the slot, the slot closed and the field instantly began to change. Bit by bit, the once luscious ground and trees that surrounded the area became a wasteland, barren of all life.

"Thanks to this field spell, once per a turn, I can draw two extra cards."

Picking up two cards, Legato smirked evilly, saying "Next, I place one card face down, and then I activate the spell Giant Trunade, which forces all spell and trap cards on the field back to their owners' hand. Say farewell to whatever you two had planned this turn!"

Without warning, a large wind suddenly blew up. Instantly, the wasteland vanished, along with the four face down card images on Illidan and Jaden's field.

"That's not good." Jaden remarked.

"Yeah, it's definitely not good." Illidan lamely commented.

Sneering at the two, Legato continued on, saying "Oh yes, I forgot to mention, the card I just set, it activated when I played my Giant Trunade. The card is a trap known as Treasure Map, which allows me to draw two new cards, but I must discard one once I'm done."

Picking up another two cards, Legato examined them before picking one and placing it into his Graveyard Slot. Smirking once more, he said "I next play my field spell once more, so rise up again Fallen Paradise!"

Once more, the field transformed into the wasteland with no life whatsoever.

"Now I may pick up two more cards due to Fallen Paradise's effect."

"Great, he drew six cards in one turn." Chazz grumbled.

Smirking at his two new cards, Legato called out "I summon this, my Chaos Core (0/0) to the field."

Materializing slowly onto the field was a strange looking winged creature with a white sphere center, and some kind of strange smoke underneath of it's body.

"Next, I play the spell Quick Summon, letting me summon another monster, so I pick this, my Phantom of Chaos (0/0)."

Appearing onto the field was a simple black sphere made up of some type of fog.

"My monster may not look like much, but I assure you, it has plenty of strength. To end my turn, I place these five cards face down. Good luck with your moves." (Illidan 4000, Jaden 4000; Legato 8000)

Drawing his next card, Illidan pondered upon Legato's previous turn. "_Hmm, he didn't summon a single Sacred Beast, not to mention, he played two monsters that have zero attack points. Worst of all, I have never seen the monsters he played before. I wonder what kind of effects they have. Attacking them maybe the only way to find out about them. It might be risky, but as Squall so frequently told me in the past, nothing ventured, nothing gained._"

"Alright, I'll start things off this turn by summoning my Silent Magician LV4 (1000/1000)."

A young, child like mage in white and blue robes, with a blue kind of body suit, a strange mage's hate, holding a strange looking scepter, and long silver hair emerged onto the field.

"Silent Magician, attack his Phantom of Chaos with Silent Scepter Blast!"

Aiming his scepter at the weaker black sphere, the young mage released a small white blast of magical energy.

Before the energy blast made it halfway across the field, Legato smirked evilly, saying "I was prepared for this. I activate the trap known as Shift, which let's me transfer your attack from one monster to another. Your new target shall be Chaos Core."

With that said, the strange winged creature instantly leapt in front of the black sphere creature, seemingly taking on the attack.

Sneering, Legato added "Oh yes, I forgot to mention about Chaos Core's effect. When attacked, I can send from my deck or hand to the Graveyard three specific monsters."

Pulling his deck out, Legato searched through it and picked out three cards. Once finished, he shuffled his deck and replaced it within it's slot. Turning the three cards towards Illidan and Jaden, both lightly gasped at the sight of the cards.

"I send these three, my Legendary Demons, to the Graveyard." Legato smugly said.

Once all three monster cards were pulled into his Graveyard Slot, Legato sneered once more, saying "By doing this, my Chaos Core gains three Phantom Counters. When I remove a counter, I can reduce all Battle Damage to my monster to zero."

The blast of white energy immediately hit the winged creature upon Legato finishing his words. Smoke billowed from the strike, but as it vanished, it became apparent that the weaker creature survived, and Legato had taken no damage to his life points.

"But why give up three of your most powerful monsters!?" Jaden asked with full confusion.

Smirking, Legato nonchalantly replied "The Legendary Demons are powerful, even within my Graveyard. You shall soon see what I mean."

"In the mean time, it's still my turn, so Luster Dragon, show his Phantom of Chaos your Ruby Blaster!" Illidan declared.

Opening it's jaws, the sapphire dragon spat a ruby colored fireball at the black sphere.

"I was hoping you'd do that." Legato coolly said. "I activate another trap, this one known as Chaos Form. This trap now acts like an equip card, which I equip to my Phantom of Chaos. When targeted for an attack, a random monster from my Graveyard is chosen and that monster's attack and defense points become Phantom's points."

"That means…" Illidan started while a sweat drop slid down the side of his face.

"My monster isn't defenseless. So, which of the Legendary Demons shall be equipped, hmm?" Legato slyly replied.

After a moment, a monster card image appeared in front of the sphere creature. The card showed the form of a large blue and purple monster.

"Looks like Raviel, Lord of Phantasm (4000/4000) has been chosen. I believe you're about to lose a massive amount of life points Illidan." Legato icily said.


	72. Chapter 72: Demons and Anubis, Pt 2

**Hey everyone! Well, it's the day after Christmas, and things are pretty good. Me and my mate had a great Christmas together. I spent part of it over at my grandma's (dad's side), and ended up playing touch football most of the afternoon with my younger cousin, dad, and three uncles. We had a lot of fun. Eventually, after an hour or 2, we tired out and went to my dad's house. There, my mate met up with us (she had to work till 2 and got there at 3). We had steaks and chicken for dinner on the grill, and afterwards, opened our presents. My step mom got me and my mate a nice camera and printer, and my step brother did a decent job on movies, which was cool. After that, me and my mate went downstairs and played Monopoly with my step brother. I lost first… I had freaking Board Walk and Park Place, but never got to put a house or motel on either! (/Heavily sighs\) Anyways, we went home not long after that and I set up my new printer, camera, GPS (one my mom got me), and a few other things. Needless to say, I've been busy with it, lol. Today, my mate went shopping with my step mom, and I'm home alone. Other than that, it's been a quiet day.**

**Story wise, things are moving, so no worries, lol.**

**Last time, the duel for saving Marie and possibly the world has begun, with Jaden and Illidan teaming up to take on Legato. Legato has thus far played smartly, using strategies to throw the duo off. Can Illidan and Jaden manage to defeat the cunning Legato, or are they being set up for a major fall?**

**Ok, moving on, time for reviews!**

**Nathan: True, I used the best of Yugi's past decks really to make his current one. I think mostly, it was a combo of his past decks with Yami's final deck. Glad you liked the powered up Dark Magician, although I did use Dark Illusion and Dark Sphere on him. Yeah, I saw that Magic Formula is a card now, and that like you said, it gives a monster 700 attack points instead of 500, plus 1000 bonus life points when sent to the Graveyard. It does suck that it's for only Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl's use only though. Heh, who knows if Illidan will use Chaos Control to win or not again. It could happen… Thanks for the review!**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Heh, I suppose the true power of the Legendary Demons is due to come out sometime or another. Who knows (other than me, hehe) what Legato has planned. Thanks for the review.**

**Knives91: Yep, it has begun. Lol, yes, all of the above! LOL! Yeah, I'm sure Jaden will show how a real dunce duels, hehe. Thanks for the review.**

**DuelistBlake1852: Cool that you're going to use Phantom of Chaos as well. It's a decent card, and good for helping out with summoning the Sacred Beasts much easier. Lol, actually, Illidan has only beat Jaden technically once in a tag team duel, and that wasn't one on one, so who knows what a singles match would turn up. Yeah, Jaden's deck does rock. Heh, I built a cutesy E-Hero deck, with the two fusions E-Hero Flare Neos and Glow Neos in it. Lol, I actually summoned Glow Neos and used it to beat my mate. I was somewhat shocked my strategy to get it out worked, and that it helped me win the game, lol. Who knew the E-Heroes would be that lucky, lol. But yes, things could get bad if the fusion of the Beasts come out. Thank you for wishing me a Merry Christmas. Heh, life has a way of keeping us from things sometimes. Yep, Legato is using some of the cards Marcel did, but not all. Thanks for the review!**

**Thank you all for your reviews. Wow, only 2 more to go till we're at the 400****th**** review. I do believe this story will beat **_**The Wolves Seal**_** in reviews, and word wise, it will beat **_**ToP**_** I think. Time will tell. Thank you all again though for your continuous reviews. Each of them are helpful and inspiring to keep going. I'm glad people like what I come up with. Heh, makes me glad I have an overactive imagination, hehe.**

**Thank you all again, and I'm going to go ahead and go now. Enjoy the chapter!**

**Chapter 72**

Quickly glancing at his hand, Illidan called out "Not happening because I activate Magical Dimension! With this spell, I'm allowed to sacrifice a monster on my field to special summon a new Spellcaster Type monster to my field, so farewell Luster Dragon, and hello Rapid-Fire Magician (1600/1200)!"

Rising up from the ground was a strange statue held up by a box like structure with chains holding it in midair. The statue soon opened the top half up, sucking in the sapphire dragon, causing the ruby energy to immediately vanish in mid-flight. Once the doors to the statue closed, it lightly glowed before opening up once more. Coming out in the dragon's place was a mage with long flowing purple hair, a black pair of leather pants, a short sleeved cloak with black flowing cloak, an odd black hat, two black finger cut off gloves, a staff with bird like claws with a small orb clutched within it, and nine different colored spheres forming an arch around him.

"Also, thanks to the special ability of my spell card, I can destroy a monster on your field, so prepare to lose Phantom of Chaos!"

Sneering, Legato remarked "Not quite yet, for I play my Bounce spell. Thanks to this, I can transfer the effect of your spell card to one of your monsters. I think your new one shall do."

Opening it's doors once more, the statue released a red beam into the back of the mage with purple hair. He let out a small scream, but vanished soon enough to silence him.

Growling in frustration, Illidan said "I place two cards face down to end my turn." (Illidan 4000, Jaden 4000; Legato 8000)

"Those were some close calls." Alexis commented.

Nodding in response, Chazz muttered "Very close."

Seeing it was his turn, Jaden drew his card and smiled, saying "Don't worry about last turn Illidan. You got him to use up three face down cards, so now we have a clue what he has face down. Anyways, I think it's time I gave this a shot, so I play my Polymerization spell card, fusing Elemental Hero Sparkman (1600/1400) and Elemental Hero Clayman (800/2000) together to form Elemental Hero Thunder Giant (2400/1500)!"

A small electrical storm without warning flared up, from which came a blue human like creature with some gold armor. The man in blue wore a helmet that covered his entire head, but showed now signs of eye holes. On his back were two wing like structures that were mostly blue. Beside of the blue creature, a stone like large monster with yellow painted feet and edges of shoulder pads, with dark grey filling the rest of his body in, except for his red domed head and a small black circle that was around his neck appeared.

Once the two were fully on the field, they began swirling together. From the swirling, several bolts of electricity began flashing around a large yellow creature with purple on it's large muscular arms and legs. His hands held electricity within them, which made a crackling sound. On his chest was a massive blue sphere, where electricity seemed to constantly be crackling. On his back, he had a pair of wing like structures, and his head was covered with a helmet that showed only his mouth. The large creature let out a small yell and took up an offensive stance.

"Time for Thunder Giant's totally sweet effect! When played, he can automatically crush any monster with less attack points than himself, so I think I'll choose your Phantom of Chaos!"

Letting out a bit of a roar, the massive yellow creature brought both of his arms up to the circle on his chest. Holding his hands apart, electricity began to build between them till a sphere formed. With ease, he flung the sphere of electricity towards the black sphere.

Smirking at this, Legato called out "I think not. I activate a trap card called Divine Wrath. To use this trap, I must discard a card, so I sent my useless Ultimate Offering to the Graveyard. Now that I've discarded, I can negate the special effect of your monster and destroy it!"

A barrier of red energy instantly flared up in front of the electrical sphere, stopping it in it's tracks. The sphere was instantly destroyed, and the red barrier transformed into a bolt of energy, which began racing back towards the large yellow creature.

Quickly pulling a card from his hand to show, Jaden cried out "It's all good, because I play the spell De-Fusion, separating my Thunder Giant back into Sparkman (1600/1400) and Clayman (800/2000)!"

The large yellow creature instantly began to glow with a white light. Before the blast could hit, the large creature split in two, allowing the beam to pass through where nothing stood. The two white glowing lights instantly took form of the blue and gold warrior in an offensive stance and the large grey, black round creature, which took a one-knee defensive stance on a horizontal card.

"Nice save Jaden." Illidan commented with a smile.

Smiling back, Jaden nodded, saying "Thanks, but I'm far from done. I'll now summon my Neo-Spacian Flare Scarab (500/500)!"

Appearing onto the field in a cylinder of fire was a bug like warrior. With the flames dying, it became apparent he had wings on his back, covered by a thick hide, a chiseled body, a helmet that appeared to be like a horned beetle, and a human like face that extended to his neck.

"With every spell and trap on your field, Flare Scarab gains 400 attack points, and last time I counted, you have three, meaning Flare Scarab gains a total of 1200 points (500 + 3 400 1700/500)."

The bug-man creature's body instantly became surrounded by flames upon Jaden's final words, seemingly increasing it's strength.

"Alright, here goes. Flare Scarab, attack Chaos Core with Flaming Arrow!"

Pulling his palms together, the bug-man formed a sphere of hot flames. Aiming for the strange winged creature, the bug-man launched his sphere of flames, intending on incinerating it's target.

Sneering at this, Legato held his hand out at his final face down card, saying "You fools still haven't learned anything. I activate my trap card, Wall of Revealing Light. By paying in intervals of 1000 points, I can erect a wall that will keep monsters out with less attack points than the wall. So, I shall give up 4000 life points, meaning only monsters with more than 4000 attack points can attack."

Appearing before the two monsters on Legato's field was a large green barrier. Upon striking the barrier, the sphere of flames burned out.

Growling lightly with frustration, Jaden sighed, saying "Alright, I'll throw down a face down and switch Bubbleman to defense. That'll have to do it for me." (Illidan 4000, Jaden 4000; Legato 4000)

"_He gave up half his life points just to shield himself. That's just great. Only one monster in my deck has 4000 attack points, and even it can't break that barrier._" Illidan mused in his mind.

Smirking at the frustration that showed on both Illidan and Jaden's faces, Legato drew his card, but before he could say anything, Illidan called out "Since you just drew a card, my Silent Magician's special ability just kicked in. Each time you draw a card, he gains a Spell Counter, which raises his attack points by 500 (1000 + 500 1500/1000)."

Lightly glowing, the young mage's body slightly grew in height, showing the significance of it's gain in power.

Waving Illidan off, Legato only said "No matter, your mage isn't strong enough to matter. For now though, I activate my field spell's effect, and draw two more cards."

Upon picking up two cards, the white mage suddenly glowed and grew again in height (1500 + 500 2 2500/1000).

"I think it's time I took care of some of your two's pathetic creatures. I believe I'll start with you, young one." Legato coolly said.

Lightly smirking, Jaden calmly said "Bring it on."

"Gladly." Legato replied with an evil grin. "I activate Phantom of Chaos's special ability, allowing me to select one Effect monster in my Graveyard and equip it to my monster. Whatever monster I choose shall dictate my monster's attack and defense points, as well as it's effect. The monster I shall choose is my Harmon, Lord of Striking Thunder (4000/4000)."

Slowly morphing, the black sphere on the field grew in size as lightning began to lick it's outer shell. Bit by bit, the black sphere finally began changing shape. It's new shape had massive thin skinned wings, thin arms with large clawed tips on it's hands, red glowing eyes, two large horns and a chin like horn on it's head, a long powerful tail, and sharp claws and fangs. The creature roared loudly, sending out several shockwaves.

"No way…" Jaden mouthed in shock.

Sneering at Jaden, Legato called out "Phantom of Chaos, destroy Jaden's pathetic Flare Scarab with Cerulean Sky Fire!"

Roaring loudly, the massive black creature opened it's jaws and released a streak of blue lightning towards the bug-man creature.

Waking from his shock, Jaden quickly said "I don't think so, I'm not that easy to take down! Go trap card, Hero Barrier! With this, I can negate your attack so long as I have an Elemental Hero on my field. So much for that attack."

A shield of blue energy immediately formed in front of the bug creature, completely stopping the blast, although the shield seemed to buckle a good bit.

"Not bad mortal." Legato commented. Smirking evilly, he continued on, saying "You may have evaded me this turn, but not next time. I place these three cards face down."

Lightly chuckling, Jaden quickly cut in, saying "Thanks for doing that, because now Flare Scarab gets stronger (1700 + 400 3 2900/500)."

Instantly, the bug-man creature's body was surrounded by flames, making him smirk as his strength increased.

"That was pointless, much like Illidan's mage. I shall end my turn, which means my Phantom of Chaos returns to it's original form (0/0)." Legato calmly stated.

Upon saying this, the large black creature morphed back into it's original sphere form that looked nearly harmless.

"Let's see what the two of you can do now." (Illidan 4000, Jaden 4000; Legato 4000)

Drawing a card, Illidan examined it for a moment. After making a decision, he finally said "I place my Royal Magical Library (0/2000) in defense mode."

A large octagon like building with a doorway in the front part of the building that was open, revealing the inside had several levels with many books in shelves appeared onto to the field.

"I place one card face down and end my turn at that." (Illidan 4000, Jaden 4000; Legato 4000)

Nodding to Illidan, Jaden drew his next card and said "I've got a way around your little trap card now. Meet Elemental Hero Wildheart (1500/1600)!"

A tanned warrior with a tied back black pony tail, a goatee, a strange red set of tattoos on his chest and shoulders, a bare chest and arms, a large sword on his back in a sheath, and a white loin cloth rose up onto the field with a loud battle cry.

"Wildheart, show him what that big bad sword is for by attacking his Chaos Core with Wild Slash!"

Letting out another battle cry, the tanned warrior rushed forward. Along the way, he drew his large sword from the sheath on his back and leapt into the air, preparing to make a strike.

"Have you forgotten my trap card boy? Remember, only monsters with over 4000 attack points can get through my Wall of Revealing Light." Legato smugly admonished.

Wagging a finger, Jaden wryly replied "Not so, because Wildheart has a special ability. He's unaffected by trap cards, meaning he can bust through your little barrier!"

Upon meeting the green barrier, the tan warrior slid through it, as if the barrier wasn't even there. Coming down fast, the warrior slashed the winged creature hard with his sword, which seemed to only stand there in confusion for a moment.

Giving off a small growl, Legato finally smirked, saying "Very well, but Chaos Core has it's own ability. Remember, it still has two Phantom Counters, so I remove one to reduce the Battle Damage to zero."

Backing off, the tan warrior leapt back to Jaden's field while the winged creature only shimmered lightly, as if regenerating it's power.

"I switch Sparkman to defense mode and call it a turn." (Illidan 4000, Jaden 4000; Legato 4000)

Staring intently, Alexis commented "Those two can't seem to just break Legato's defenses."

"Yeah, he's got that barrier up, plus whatever else he can think of." Chazz replied.

"_Just keep fighting guys, and don't give up._" Alexis whispered within her mind.

Hanging off of the obelisk, Marie looked on with concerned eyes. "_Each time I think they're getting somewhere, they get pushed back. Legato built his deck to be defensive, but also totally offensive as well. There has to be a weakness, somewhere within it._"

Flinching in pain as she felt even more of her body numbing, she turned more of her Shadow Powers to the barrier she had in place around the child in her. "_I may not live if I keep this up, but I can't let an innocent child die due to Legato. I'll give my life to protect this child. I only hope my barrier filters the poison out._"

Sneering as he prepared to draw a card, Legato called out "Before I begin, I activate a trap card called Solemn Wishes. Each time I draw now, I gain 500 life points."

Picking up his new card, Legato lightly chuckled and watched the white robed mage grow in height once more (2500 + 500 3000/1000). "Now that I've drawn, I gain 500 life points. Next, I activate a trap known as Greed. Whenever one of us draws outside of our draw phase, we lose 500 life points per a card during our End Phase. Continuing on, I activate my field spell, meaning I get to draw two cards."

Grabbing two cards, Legato eyed them. While eyeing them, he noticed that the white mage glowed once again (3000 + 500 3500/1000). Lightly chuckling, he continued on, saying "I activate Phantom of Chaos's special ability, and once more, I equip it to my Hamon, Lord of Striking Thunder (4000/4000) once more."

Transforming before everyone, the black sphere reshaped it's body till it became the large creature it had the turn before.

"Phantom of Chaos, obliterate that boy's Elemental Hero Wildheart with Cerulean Sky Fire!"

Roaring loudly, the large dark creature shot out a blast of blue lightning from it's jaws towards the tanned warrior.

Before contact could be made, Illidan yelled "Forget about me Legato?! I'm still here, so I activate the trap Magic Cylinder, meaning your attack is negated and you lose life points equal to your monster's attack points!"

Two pink barrels with a checker pattern on the ends facing the blast and a yellow question mark on each appeared.

Chuckling darkly, Legato remarked "I have yet to forget you Illidan, hence why I activate the spell Trap Booster. By sending a card from my hand, I can activate a trap card from my hand. I'll dump my Royal Command trap and activate the trap card Trap Jammer. This lets me negate your trap card, thus allowing my attack to continue on."

Slowly, the two pink barrels disintegrated into dust, leaving the tanned warrior unprotected once more.

"I'm not done with you yet Legato, for I activate the spell Book of Moon! This let's me flip Jaden's Wildheart from attack mode to face down defense mode, meaning you have no target anymore!" declared Illidan.

A blue book with a golden moon on the cover appeared before the tanned warrior and began glowing with a dark blue aura. Instantly, the warrior vanished and a horizontal face down card appeared in his place, just in time to miss the blue lightning that had been crossing the field.

Lightly growling with a tint of anger, Legato said "You're becoming a real pain Illidan."

"Glad I'm doing my job right then." Illidan smartly remarked.

"I shall end my turn at this…"

"Not quite, or did you forget about your trap card?! Now you take 1000 points of damage for activating that Greed card." Illidan declared.

Chuckling, Legato coolly asked "Is that so? Then you won't mind when I activate a trap known as Barrel Behind The Door, which let's me switch the damage from myself to you. I hope you enjoy this pain."

The trap card on Legato's field instantly began glowing, sending out a dark aura, which instantly surrounded Illidan. The aura seemed to send pain throughout Illidan, who screamed out and hunched over a bit.

"That does it for me for now. I'd pay closer attention next time Illidan." (Illidan 3000, Jaden 4000; Legato 5000)

"Are you alright!?" Jaden asked anxiously.

After a moment, Illidan stood up fully, but was lightly panting. He finally replied with "Yes, I'll be fine. But at the moment, it's my move."

Quickly picking up a card, he examined it before saying "First off, I forgot to mention my Royal Magical Library's special ability last turn. Each time a spell card is activated, it gains one Spell Counter. So far, it has two. When it has three, I'm allowed to use it's special ability, but more on that soon enough. For now though, I'll send my Silent Magician to the Graveyard in order to activate his special ability. By doing this, I can now special summon his next form, Silent Magician LV8 (3500/1000)!"

Being consumed by white light, the smaller mage vanished, only to be replaced by a taller, more adult version of the previous mage. He still wore the same type of clothing, but his hair was definitely longer, along with his body becoming more mature.

"Next, I play Pot of Greed, meaning two new cards for me."

While picking up two, Illidan heard Legato chuckle darkly, saying "Foolish move Illidan. Did you forget about Greed already?"

"No, but I'm not worried about it at the moment." he simply replied. "Since I just played a spell card, that means Royal Magical Library has three Spell Counters. Due to that, I can remove all three counters to activate it's special ability, which is to let me draw one additional card."

Drawing a new card, Illidan examined it before saying "I play the equip spell Mage Power, and I use it on my Silent Magician. Thanks to this spell card, for each spell or trap on my field, my mage gains 500 points. Since I only have one so far, that means he gains a total of only 500 (3500 + 500 4000/1000 + 500 1500)."

Glowing brightly with white energy, the young mage took up an offensive stance.

"Big deal Illidan. Your monster still can't attack any of my monsters due to my trap card." Legato smoothly reminded.

Nodding, Illidan lightly chuckled, saying "True, but who said I was through. I place a card face down, meaning Silent Magician gets stronger again (4000 + 500 4500/1500 + 500 2000). That's more than enough to break through your barrier."

"Sweetness! I knew you'd figure a way around it Illidan!" Jaden exclaimed.

Smiling over at Jaden, Illidan turned his attention back to Legato, saying "It's time I took that morphing sphere of goop out. Silent Magician, attack Phantom of Chaos with Silent Scepter Blast!"

Leaping into the air, the white robed mage aimed his staff straight for the black sphere creature. Magical energy began building up on the end of the staff, giving off a crackling sound. After a moment of power build up, a white sphere of magical energy formed on the end of the staff. Taking aim, the mage released the sphere straight at the black sphere.

"This won't work Illidan, for I have led you into a trap." Legato smoothly said. "I activate the trap Chaos Burst, which forces me to first sacrifice a monster. I choose my Chaos Core."

Upon those words being said, the strange winged creature vanished, leaving the black sphere creature behind.

"Now that I've done that, I can destroy the attacking monster."

The trap lightly glowed red for a moment before finally shooting out a beam of red energy. The beam smashed through the white sphere instantly, and into the white robed mage, who could do nothing to stop it.

Lightly growling with frustration, Illidan began to say something, but Legato stopped him, saying "Now, now Illidan, that's not all my trap does. Once it destroys your monster, you take damage equal to the total attack points of the monster I destroyed. Since you so kindly increased your monster's attack points to 4500, that means you lost 4500 life points, and of course you lose this duel."

Glowing once more, the trap card released a thunderously strong burst of red energy straight for Illidan.

"No, Illidan!" Jaden cried out.

Chuckling, Illidan stared at the blast and calmly said "That's not a bad move Legato, but I was ready for this. I play from my hand the spell Ring of Defense!"

Appearing before Illidan was a green ring like structure with four panels folded out like a fan.

"Thanks to this spell, I can reduce the damage I'll receive by your trap card to zero."

Gradually, the ring began to spin faster and faster. Finally, the red beam struck the fan, but the beam was instantly dispersed by the ring, leaving nothing to hit Illidan.

Sneering at this, Legato calmly said "Nice save Illidan, but don't forget, Greed will take another 1500 of your life points."

Closing his eyes, Illidan nodded lightly, saying "I haven't forgotten." Reopening them, he pointed at his remaining monster, saying "Thanks to me activating Ring of Defense and Mage Power, my Royal Magical Library has two new Spell Counters. True, it doesn't matter at the moment, but soon enough it will. For now, I move to my End Phase."

Glowing with a dark aura, one of the trap cards on Legato's field fired a beam of black energy at Illidan. Upon being struck, Illidan fell to his hands and knees, instantly crying out in pain.

After a few moments of heavy panting, Illidan muttered "I end my turn." (Illidan 1500, Jaden 4000; Legato 5000)


	73. Chapter 73: Demons and Anubis, Pt 3

**Hello once more everybody. Well, this week has continued on. Sheesh, sometimes I hate family. Ok, here's what I'm grumbling about. On Christmas, my dad asked if I was coming out Wednesday to help him do some work on the farm. I said I **_**might**_**… Note I stress the word might. That's not a yes, not a no. It is possible I will come out, but also possible I won't. Anyways, Wednesday, my mate went shopping while I stayed home. I ended up cleaning our computer room, which had stacks of at least 2 months worth of bills sitting on the desk and all kinds of boxes of junk sitting around in it. With that in mind, I cleaned the room. I put everything away, filed the bills, picked out what was trash, etc. I also took some of the stuff from our front room and put it away as well, and put our DVDs, CDs, and PS2 games away. In the end, it took me about 3 or 4 hours to clean it all up. I got done at about 4 or 5, and decided to write till my mate got home. She got home about 6, so not too long a wait. At any rate, I called my dad that night like always (him and my step mom can't stay out of contact with me for more than a day oddly enough) and asked what he had done that day. He grumbled that he had been waiting on me to come out and help him out… Like always, he expected me to drop everything I was doing and come out. Anyways, the conversation sucked, with him being quiet and seemingly pouting, so I finally just got off the phone. He seemed to be pouting over it last night still, so I've decided he can keep doing that and I'm not about to call him. If I promise I'll be there, I'll be there. If I say I **_**MIGHT**_** be there, that means there is a 50/50 chance I won't be or will be. It does not mean the same as me saying "I'll be there." There is a difference, and he can't ever see that. Arg, he just irritates me so much when he gets in his little pouting moods… (/Sighs\) I'll just let him pout for a few days. If he don't get over it, then oh well, it sucks to be him.**

**Anyways, let's move onto something else. Story wise, **_**MtM **_**is moving along nicely. Me and ardee have done a good bit of planning, and I'm still continuing to write on it some. Heh, I just need to really do my writing more than anything. For now, I stopped on **_**Another**_** till I finish up with a chapter on **_**MtM**_**, but oh well.**

**Wow, over 400 reviews now! That's an excellent job everyone! At this rate, we'll beat **_**TWS**_** record, but I think **_**ToP**_**'s record is out of reach unfortunately, lol. But thank you everyone who has reviewed this story. I'm so happy to hear feedback on it constantly, letting me know that what I've written does bring some people a bit of enjoyment. I know reading others' fics is fun, but since becoming a writer, I try to leave feedback, good or bad, to help further their writing skills. It's just important to get feedback is all I'm saying, and am very happy with the feedback everyone gives me.**

**Last time, Illidan and Jaden had several close calls with Legato. In the end, Legato did a good bit of damage to Illidan, leaving him on his hands and knees at the end of the chapter. Does Illidan and Jaden have the combined strength to beat Legato, or are they doomed to lose their souls?**

**Ok, time for some real fun! That's right, it's Review Time!**

**x-knight20: Thanks for the feedback. Hmm, I don't know if CN is going to put GX back on or not. From what I've seen, 4kids TV has nearly caught up with them. They're in the other dimension on it, meaning they're catching up at an alarming rate. I think it's dumb of CN to drop GX if that is the case, but oh well. I can see CN really going downhill anyways. I mean, come on, playing Goosebumps episodes… That's just plain dumb for a cartoon channel. At least they haven't screwed with Naruto… yet.**

**ardee: LOL! You have to have the record for every milestone, now don't you, hehe. But it's cool. I think the end game of this story is kind of one of the better, although I liked **_**TWS**_** real well too… Oh well, lol. But yes, who knows what's going to happen from here on… Thanks for the review.**

**DuelistBlake1852: Yes, Illidan is having a really tough go of it. Jaden isn't doing too great himself, but better than Illidan I suppose. Yes, I'm using the anime's effect for Chaos Burst. Part of the cards I use the anime's effect, but most I use the real effect. It just depends on what card. Yes, I know about spell speed, and you are right. Counter traps out run Quick Play spells, meaning De-Fusion wouldn't have really worked. Good catch on that. Heh, when I used to duel constantly, I learned all about the speeds, but now that I write, eh, I kind of semi-ignore the rules on minor things like that. I know, it's not legal in the real world, but this is a fan fic, so oh well, lol. But thanks for the catch. Heh, I don't view it as a flame btw. I view it as feedback that points out a flaw in my logic or whatever, lol. But thanks for pointing it out. It is always good to see people catch things like that. Eh, I wouldn't worry about flamers. I've only had maybe one or two flames, but that was on my opinion, not the story. We worked it out though, which was good. Yes, the tide keeps shifting between the team and Legato. Who will win it all is still up in the air. Thank you for adding my story to your favs. I saw that the other day and was like wow, lol. But thank you for it. Thanks for the review!**

**Well, that's all the reviews. Btw, thanks to Raymond Barrett for your PM. I enjoyed it and responded to you. To all that left me a review, thank you. It means a good bit to see them. And to any that wish to review, don't be shy. I won't bite… my mate might, but it'll be over within a moment, hehe. But seriously, if you would like to review, feel free. I'm more than happy to answer any questions (within reason), answer any kind of comments, or whatever else you can come up with.**

**Ok guys, I'm going to cut out now. I hope you all enjoy this chapter. Till next time, enjoy!**

**Chapter 73**

"Illidan, are you alright?" Jaden asked with great concern.

Panting heavily, Illidan lightly nodded his head and tried to stand, but fell back down to his hands and knees. "I… just need… a few mom…ents." he rasped out.

Staring at Illidan on his hands and knees, Marie's eyes lightly misted. "_No, he's not alright. Those blasts, they're weakening him bit by bit. Please Illidan, stay strong my love. If something happened to you... No, he'll make it. I can't think like that, not now!_"

Seeing Illidan still down, Jaden said "Take it easy Illidan, and let me take care of things."

Picking up a new card, Jaden examined it before saying "I'll kick things off this turn by flip summoning my Elemental Hero Wildheart (1500/1600)!"

The horizontal card on the field instantly flipped over and vanished, but in it's place stood the tan warrior from earlier in the duel.

"Next up, I play Pot of Greed, meaning two cards for me."

Sneering at Jaden while drawing cards, Legato remarked "You're making the same mistake Illidan made boy."

Lightly chuckling, Jaden shook his head, saying "Not really, because I have a plan. It starts by me hooking up my Elemental Hero Wildheart with this card, the equip spell Cyclone Boomerang!"

Appearing above the tanned warrior was a large boomerang that was slowly spinning. Leaping into the air, the tanned warrior grabbed hold by the handle and took up a fighting pose.

"Thanks to his boomerang, he first gains 500 attack points (1500 + 500 2000/1600). Next up, I play the spell Damage-Off Zone. With this, all Battle Damage is halved for everyone. Alright, it's go time, so Wildheart, show Phantom of Chaos what that boomerang can really do! Attack!"

Letting out a loud battle cry, the tanned warrior leapt into the air and tossed his boomerang across the field. The speed of the boomerang was incredibly fast, and soon began it's approach on the sphere like monster.

Chuckling darkly, Legato pointed a finger at Jaden, saying "Do you take me for a fool!? I activate the trap I have equipped to my monster, Chaos Form! Thanks to this, I can randomly choose a monster in my Graveyard and equip it to my monster."

"True, but don't forget, you have a one in three chance of grabbing a pretty weak monster." Jaden was quick to quip.

"We shall see." Legato countered.

After a few moments, Legato's Graveyard Slot glowed and a monster card image appeared. It took the form of the powerful blue and purple creature that had been selected the first time.

"It looks like Raviel, Lord of Phantasm (4000/4000) has been chosen, and so that means Phantom of Chaos has 4000 attack points!" Legato declared.

Smirking, Jaden whispered "Good."

Changing shape, the sphere sent out smoke and debris across the field. Through the smoke came two massive dull black wings with thin see-through skin, large grey horns at the top, and powerful sharp talon like claws attached to strong hands. Slowly, the cloud diminished, and the rest of the creature came into view. It had massive chiseled out abs, muscular arms and legs, and finally a strong head with a strange crown like set of horns. The creature let out a massive roar, making the very ground shake.

Sneering, Legato smugly said "Your monster loses this battle. Destroy his pathetic boomerang and that warrior!"

Roaring once more, the large creature extended it's clawed hand and struck the boomerang, shattering it into millions of splinters. The clawed hand didn't stop though, for it continued on and struck the tanned warrior, impaling him with the sharp claws. The warrior howled in pain, but release from it finally came as he exploded. The clawed hand continued on and swiped Jaden, ripping a slash mark into his shirt and drawing blood. Upon being hit, Jaden screamed out in pain and clutched the wounds tightly.

"You should be more careful when facing me you foolish boy." Legato admonished with cockiness in his voice.

Lightly chuckling, Jaden replied "But I was. You see, my spell Damage-Off Zone reduced my damage to 1000 points. Plus, you triggered my Cyclone Boomerang's special effect. When sent to the Graveyard, all spell and trap cards on our fields are destroyed, and you take 500 points of damage per a card that is destroyed!"

Without warning, each and every spell and trap card on the three's fields began shattering, and the wasteland surrounding the field instantly began to vanish. Legato howled in pain as his body began to glow with a black aura, making him slide to one knee.

"All told, there was seven spell and trap cards on the field, meaning you just lost 3500 life points. Too bad for you Legato that you had all those spell and trap cards out. Before I end my turn, I'll throw down a face down, and that'll do it." (Illidan 1500, Jaden 3000; Legato 1500)

"Excellent move Jaden." Illidan commented while standing back up at long last.

Smiling at Illidan, Jaden remarked "Thanks Illidan. Together we'll take Legato down!"

Nodding back, Illidan only smiled once more. "_If not for Jaden, I'd be in a terrible mess right now. Together, as a team, we can do this, I know we can._"

Staring at the smiling pair, Marie's face softened a bit. "_That's the way you two. Teamwork will get you through this. Soon Illidan, we'll be together again, I know it._"

"Chazz, they're going to do it, I know they are!" Alexis encouragingly commented.

Smiling himself, Chazz nodded, saying "That Slacker took it to Legato big time last turn. I know he'll win this duel yet."

Maniacal laughter suddenly cut through the air, interrupting everyone's thoughts and conversations. All eyes turned to Legato as he stood up, laughing still.

"I must admit, that was a fine move boy." Legato finally said after his laughing died. "You tore down my impenetrable defenses, which has thoroughly impressed me. I should be asking you to join me in destroying the world instead of Illidan."

"Heh, like that'll ever happen." Jaden remarked.

Boldly, Illidan said "Quit while you're still in this world Legato. Hand over the Sacred Beast Cards and the cure for Marie, and you can go free to live your life out."

Laughing once more, Legato sneered at Illidan and asked "Why bother with that? I can still destroy you both easily."

Picking up a new card, he examined it before saying "It's time I took control of this duel, so I sacrifice Chaos Core to summon this, Dark Summons God (0/0)."

Instantly, the black sphere creature vanished and a strange looking creature that had large red wings with grey in them, a red kilt wrapped around it's waist that stretched to the ground, a mostly dull black looking skin, long arms, a strange head with a pair of horns that stretched up and down, and a pair of thick shoulder pads took it's place.

"Nasty looking." Jaden commented.

"Agreed." Illidan added.

Sneering at the pair, Legato calmly said "He may not be much of a looker, but his special ability more than makes up for his looks. By sacrificing him, I can bring back three old friends. You might remember the three, for they're the ones that I wish to strengthen!"

Sweat slipped down the side of Illidan's head, as he slowly said "Not good. If he brings all three Sacred Beasts out, this duel will enter a new class of difficulty."

"Yeah, I'll say." Jaden added.

Grinning evilly, Legato called out "I sacrifice my Dark Summons God, so be gone and return my three Legendary Demons: Hamon, Lord of Striking Thunder (4000/4000); Raviel, Lord of Phantasm (4000/4000); and Uria, Lord of Searing Flames (?/?)!"

Slowly, the dull black creature disintegrated, but immediately upon his disappearance, the ground began shaking, the sky darkened with lightning flashing brilliantly, and a tower of flames came shooting out of the ground.

The first creature to arise was a large dull yellow creature with massive thin skinned wings, thin arms with large clawed tips on it's hands, red glowing eyes, two large horns and a chin like horn on it's head, a long powerful tail, and sharp claws and fangs. The creature roared loudly, sending out several shockwaves.

Rising up from the ground was a thick purple fog, which seemed to be forming a cloud. Through the cloud came two massive blue wings with thin see-through skin, large blue horns at the top, and powerful sharp talon like claws attached to purple hands came out of the darkness. Slowly, the cloud diminished, and the rest of the creature came into view. It's body consisted of purple and light blue. It had massive chiseled out abs, muscular arms and legs, and finally a strong head with a strange crown like set of horns. The creature let out a massive roar, making the very ground shake.

The final creature soon began to appear from within the tower of flames. Out of the flames came a set of large red wings that had thin skin covering them that appeared to be attached to arms. Slowly, a red snake like body with a grey underbelly appeared from the flames that had many scales. The head of the monster had many spikes, and it had a massive set of sharp teeth. It let out a loud roar, making the ground shake from the power of it.

Together, the three creatures roared once more, making the entire island shake at their power.

Illidan only stared at the three in somewhat shock. "_Each has so much power. Is it even possible to beat all three at once?_"

Looking at Jaden, Illidan saw fear running through the young man's eyes. Realizing he had to be strong, Illidan turned his gaze to Marie, who seemed to be staring at the creatures with some fear as well. Returning his gaze to the creatures, he made up his mind then.

"_We must take them down. It's the only way to end this nightmare. No matter what, I will stop those creatures and save Marie! I swore an oath to always protect her, and I will fulfill it, even if I have to lay my life down for it!_"

"You may have the three Sacred Beasts, Legato, but that doesn't mean you've won. Let's not forget, they're not indestructible." Illidan calmly stated.

Sneering at the comment, Legato nodded and responded "True, they aren't indestructible, but they are not easy to beat either my friend. Oh yes, by the way, Uria's points have yet to be determined. For every continuous trap in my Graveyard, he gains 1000 points, and right now, I have six. That means Uria's points are 6000 (0 + 1000 6 6000/0 + 1000 6 6000)."

Roaring even louder, the large red dragon glowed brightly with flames licking it's body while it's strength increased.

"Now then, unfortunately, due to Dark Summons God effect, my Legendary Demons can't attack this turn, but I can use their special abilities, so I use Uria's effect on Jaden's face down card. Destroy his card Uria!"

Roaring loudly, the red dragon sent out many shock waves at the face down card, flipping it up instantly and shattering it.

Smiling at this, Jaden called out "Thanks for that, because you just destroyed my Dummy Marker trap. When destroyed, I get to draw one new card from my deck."

Frowning while Jaden drew, Legato quickly regained his composure and said "I shift my Phantasm of Chaos to defense and end my turn." (Illidan 1500, Jaden 3000; Legato 1500)

Drawing quickly, Illidan calmly said "First things first, I activate Royal Magical Library's special effect. Since Jaden played a spell last turn, my Library gained another Spell Counter, putting it up to three. I remove all three now, and draw another card."

Picking up a new card, Illidan examined it before saying "I place a monster in defense and set one card face down. That should do it for me." (Illidan 1500, Jaden 3000; Legato 1500)

Nodding, Jaden drew and said "Alright, I'll kick my turn off by summoning Chrysalis Chicky (600/400) in defense mode."

Emerging onto the field was a small pink see-through bubble with a small young red bird with blue eyes inside of it.

"Thank you for summoning that monster." Legato coolly said. "By doing that, you activated Raviel's special ability. Each time a new monster is Normal Summoned, I get to special summon a Phantasm Token (1000/1000) to the field. I shall place this one in defense mode."

Slowly materializing onto the field was a small blue and purple creature that looked like a miniature version of the larger blue and purple creature.

Shrugging, Jaden continued on, saying "No biggie. To end, I'll throw down a face down, and that'll do it." (Illidan 1500, Jaden 3000; Legato 1500)

Quickly drawing, Legato sneered, saying "Since you fools didn't attack, I shall do the attacking, but first I activate Uria's special ability, meaning I can destroy one face down spell or trap on the field. I choose your card boy, so Uria, do it!"

Roaring loudly, the large red snake like dragon sent out thunderous shockwaves at Jaden's face down card. Upon reaching it, the card was easily shattered.

Smirking at this, Jaden called out "Thanks Legato, I needed you to do that, because you just activated my Hero Medal trap. When sent to the Graveyard by an effect, I can automatically shuffle it back into my deck and draw one card."

Placing the card back within his deck, Jaden shuffled and drew one card.

"Clever boy." Legato coolly said. "You'll need better tactics than that to beat me though. Uria, destroy Illidan's pitiful face down monster now with Hyper Blaze!"

Roaring loudly once more, the large snake like dragon opened it's jaws and shot out a stream of hot flames at the horizontal card. Upon reaching the card, it activated and flipped up, showing a young mage with blond hair that stuck straight up, wearing a set of purple robes that covered most of his body, and the mage had a green staff in his hands.

"Good job Legato, you just activated my Apprentice Magician's (400/800) special ability, which let's me add a Spell Counter to any of my cards on my field, so long as that card can have a Spell Counter, so I choose my Royal Magical Library." Illidan declared.

"No matter, for your mage is gone." Legato smartly shot back.

The young mage was instantly incinerated to a crisp and didn't have a chance to yell out in pain at all. Smoke filled the field, and the smell of something burning hit the nose of everyone.

Uncovering his face from the intense heat, Illidan called out "My mage maybe gone, but you helped me out in activating his special ability. When sent to the Graveyard, I'm allowed to special summon a new level two or lower Spellcaster Type monster from my deck in face down defense."

Pulling his deck out, Illidan examined it momentarily before choosing a new card and slapping it horizontally to his Duel Disk. "That should do it."

Lightly growling with frustration, Legato snapped "You will fall in this duel Illidan. Raviel, destroy his pathetic new creature with Shimmering Slash!"

Letting out a battle roar, the large blue and purple creature stepped forward and pulled back it's massive clawed right hand. In a simple thrust forward, the creature pierced the face down card image, which instantly shattered, revealing the same purple robed mage from the previous turn, but this time he was impaled by the claws of the large creature. Within a moment, the mage shattered, leaving the large blue and purple creature with nothing on it's claw.

"You just triggered my new Apprentice Magician's (400/800) effect. Once again, I add a new Spell Counter to my Royal Magical Library. Also, I can special summon a new replacement monster, so long as it's level two or lower and is a Spellcaster Type monster." Illidan calmly declared.

Pulling his deck out once more, he examined it before choosing a monster and slapping it to his Duel Disk horizontally. Placing his deck back into it's slot, Illidan calmly stared at Legato with complete calmness.

Lightly growling, frustration began flaring in Legato's eyes and voice as he called out "Enough of this, Hamon, destroy Illidan's last face down monster with Cerulean Sky Fire!"

Lifting it's head and roaring loudly, the dull yellow creature opened it's jaws, releasing a powerful stream of blue lightning straight for the face down card image.

"Not this time Legato, for I have a trap!" Illidan called out while turning his palm to his card. "I reveal Waboku! Thanks to this, I take zero Battle Damage, and my monster survives this little fight. Of course, you do flip my card, which helps."

Three female mages in blue robes each appeared in front of the horizontal card image and began chanting. A barrier formed, in which the blue lightning struck, sending out dispersals of the lightning everywhere. Once the blast ended, the face down card suddenly vanished and revealed the same mage from the two previous battles.

"Lucky thing I picked my last Apprentice Magician (400/800) for this last battle. Thanks to him, my Royal Magical Library gains yet another Spell Counter." Illidan pointed out.

Loudly growling with frustration, Legato yelled "I set one face down card and end." (Illidan 1500, Jaden 3000; Legato 1500)

Lightly chuckling in her mind, Marie mentally said "_That's the way Illidan, force him to make a mistake. Once he gets angry, he'll grow sloppy, and you'll have him then._"

Looking towards Marie, Illidan lightly smiled, knowing she knew what he was up to. "_If I keep forcing Legato to get angry, I might take advantage of that. For now, I'll have to do what I can._"

Lightly sighing, he glanced at his deck, pondering what to do next. "_I need to figure out a strategy to at least get rid of one of those Sacred Beasts. With one gone, things will be easier, but so long as three live, it's nearly impossible. Heart of the Cards, help me out here, please._"

Drawing, Illidan examined the card and lightly smirked. "I first remove all three counters on my Royal Magical Library, meaning I get another new card."

Picking up his next card, Illidan smirked, saying "It's time I put an end to this duel, once and for all! I summon this, my Magical Scientist (300/300) in defense."

An older man with purple hair, a set of goggles, a white lab coat, and a yellow set of robes appeared onto the field.

"I activate his special ability, so by paying 1000 of my life points, I can special summon a level six or lower Fusion type monster. I have the perfect one in mind, so rise up Dark Flare Knight (2200/800)!"

The older man got a gleam in his goggles as he began to glow. As Illidan's life points drained, a purple glow formed on the field. Slowly, rising from the glow was a warrior holding a flame orange sword dressed in black robes outlined with red. In his left hand was a shield with flaming designs. His helmet was in the design of a dragon's scaly head, with flame red designs burned in along the black. The only skin to be seen was his face and hands, which were uncovered.

"Dark Flare Knight, attack his Uria with Flare Slash!"

Nodding, the knight in black robes leapt into the air, heading straight for the large red snake like dragon.

"Foolishness will not win this duel for you Illidan." Legato smugly commented.

Smirking, Illidan replied "We'll soon see about that."

Continuing on, the black robed knight struck the large dragon with his sword, only to have it shatter. While falling backwards, the dragon roared loudly and released a stream of flames at the warrior, making him cry out in pain before vanishing from sight.

"This duel is over, over for you that is Illidan!" Legato smugly said.

The remainder of the flames went streaming towards Illidan, who only stood his ground. Marie stared wide-eyed as the flames surrounded Illidan, seemingly making him vanish from view.

"_NO!_" she screamed in her mind.

Smirking triumphantly, Legato smugly said "Game over fool."

"Is it really?" a voice asked aloud.

The flames finally diminished where Illidan once stood, revealing him to still be standing and with his life points unchanged. A purple barrier shimmered lightly around his body, seemingly being what had saved him.

"But how?" Legato asked, somewhat confused.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan replied "Rather simple really. My Dark Flare Knight has a very special ability. When destroyed in battle, I take zero Battle Damage."

Growling loudly, Legato glared at Illidan, who only chuckled once more. "Oh yeah, one more thing I forgot to mention about Dark Flare Knight. When he goes to the Graveyard, I'm allowed to bring out a new monster from my deck. Say hello to my new friend, Mirage Knight (2800/2000)."

Slapping the card to his Duel Disk, a golden armored knight with a blue cape, large golden shoulder pads, a golden helmet that covered all but his mouth, and a large sickle like weapon in hand appeared onto the field.

"That monster is as weak as your last. What do you hope to accomplish with him?" Legato angrily spat.

Smirking, Illidan replied "Plenty. Mirage Knight, show him what you've got by attacking Uria with Mirage Scythe Slash!"

Leaping into the air, the knight headed straight for the large red dragon, scythe drawn up to attack.

"Foolish move Illidan! Uria, incinerate his pathetic knight with Hyper Blaze!" Legato declared.

Roaring loudly, the large red snake like dragon released a stream of flames straight at the oncoming knight. The flames soon neared the knight, who did a barrel roll, escaping the flames. The knight then began to glow white and accelerated in speed straight for the dragon.

"What!?" Legato asked, completely flustered by the knight's moves.

"Oh yeah, I kind of forgot to mention Mirage Knight's special ability to you. When he attacks, his strength is increased by your own monster's attack points. In essence, he's stronger than your dragon thanks to your dragon's own strength (2800 + 6000 8800/2000)! Let him have it now Mirage Knight!" Illidan boldly declared.

Pulling back his scythe, the powerful knight slashed the dragon's head off with a simple swing. The dragon's body began tumbling down towards Legato, seemingly ready to crush him.

"Game over Legato!" Illidan called out.

The carcass of the dragon continued to fall towards Legato, who only stood still. A large explosion soon followed, sending out a large cloud of smoke and dust. Everyone covered their faces that could and waited for the air to clear out.

Slowly, the smoke thinned out, but the sight of the two remaining large monsters was seen, which instantly confused everyone.

"The Sacred Beasts should be gone…" Illidan mumbled, unsure why both still stood.

Laughter came out from the smoke. The smoke suddenly cleared out, showing a shimmering golden barrier surrounding Legato.

"What happened? You should have lost this duel!" Illidan claimed.

Still laughing, Legato pointed at Illidan and defiantly said "True, but not the case. Remember, I placed a card down last turn."

Pointing at it, he continued on, saying "The face down card I had played was this, my Spirit Barrier. So long as I have a monster, I receive zero Battle Damage."

Grumbling, Illidan took his remaining card in his hand and placed it into his Duel Disk spell/trap slot, saying "I'll lay this card face down. Unfortunately, Mirage Knight's effect only keeps him on the field for one turn. I must now remove him from play."

The powerful knight instantly vanished from the field, forcing Illidan to pick up the card on his slot and place it within the removed from play slot.

"That ends my turn." (Illidan 500, Jaden 3000; Legato 1500)


	74. Chapter 74: Demons and Anubis, Pt 4

**Hey everyone! Sorry for this being a bit late. I went out earlier today and didn't get back till late, so oh well. This past weekend wasn't too bad. Saw my grandfather Friday, in which he was doing good. Hmm, other than that, not much else really happened I suppose. Oh yeah, I didn't hear from my dad for 3 days, which is new. It kind of shocked me really. He usually calls every night, so I was a bit surprised. I figured he was either that mad at me or something. I went over today, and he was in a decent mood. I talked with my step mom, and she said when he got angry at me last week, he was angry at everyone, not just me, lol. Anyways, he didn't call due that one night he was asleep, another they weren't home, and the last he just plain forgot, lol. Also, she sided with me on my statement that the word 'might' means I will possibly be there or not. At any rate, we put a building of his together today, and I told him I **_**might**_** be back tomorrow too, but only if it's not frigidly cold or snowing. I guess things are patched up now though with him.**

**Writing wise, I got a bit done on **_**MtM**_**, and a bit on **_**Another**_**. I'm hoping to start posting **_**Another**_** before the end of the month. That's the plan, but whether it'll happen or not, we'll see, hehe.**

**Last time, Illidan and Jaden continued their battle with Legato, with Legato finally summoning his three Legendary Demons to the field. The question now is, can the team of Illidan and Jaden overcome the Sacred Beasts, or will they fall at their hands?**

**Ok, moving on, time for reviews!**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Yeah, CN has really gone down hill big time. I only watch Naruto and Adult Swim anymore, although AS has really been sucking too… The newer shows just aren't funny, and the newer episodes of Family Guy just aren't that funny either, although the animes they have are reeling me in, hehe. I did watch One Piece till they switched the voices. For crying out loud, those new voices suck! It's like they took DBZ characters and put them in for One Pieces characters, and it just rather sucks… Yes, I did catch a few of the Gemini and Gladiator Beasts coming out. I actually bought three packs of the last set to come out, which isn't too bad. I wouldn't count on the Evil Heroes for Jaden's deck in this story. After all, he's not evil… yet, lol. Thanks for the review.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. It's been cool about not reviewing during the holidays. It happens, much like life, lol. Yes, I did use some of the cards Marcel used in season 3 of GX for Legato. After all, they do help compliment the power of the Sacred Beasts really. I know that it sucks that all of season 3 hasn't aired in the U.S., but oh well. I could watch it in Japanese with subtitles, but eh, I'll wait. Besides, I've read what happens, so no biggie, which does suck cause I get to complain about the English version totally sucking due that they cut out important stuff, like Viper falling to his death, his son dying due to being hit by a car, etc. It just bites that 4kids does that crap… Thanks for the Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Again, thanks for the review!**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: LOL! Yes, I just posted 4 chapters especially due that you weren't around, hehe. But yes, the final battle thus far has been back and forth, with no true outcome seemingly within sight. The question is, who can win this back and forth battle? Yep, Legato is using the support cards for the Sacred Beasts thus far, making it harder for Illidan and Jaden to keep up. Still, there is some hope I figure with those two working as a real team. Glad you really liked this duel thus far. Ah, a new fic, eh? That's good to hear. I look forward to it. Thanks for the review!**

**DuelistBlake1852: So true, Illidan nearly had Legato with Mirage Knight, but close don't count in Duel Monsters. He could lose still yet, but we'll see. Btw, on the Apprentice Magician's effect, it does happen. I researched that one. Even though it's a flip effect, when it's flipped up due to battle, it's adding a spell counter effect does kick in. I've had a judge explain that one to me before… well, a friend, who I fought tooth and nail over it, lol. But he proved me wrong with a judge. Spell Speeds are so complicated within this game. I usually just ignore them within my stories, unless it's something I know would absolutely not work, regardless of the rules or not. Cute comment on zeroes. Eh, flamers haven't been a problem really due that I did talk it out with them. Heh, actually, I pretty much said how I would do things. I had made comments about Tea early on in **_**ToP**_** that offended people, but I said something important: don't let the opinions of the writer offend you. If you like the story, but hate the writer, ignore the commentary and read the story. That's the easiest thing to always do. Since then, we worked things out, so it was all good. Thanks for the review!**

**Nathan: Lol, yeah, it was a long holiday week and I thought I'd update a good bit. Yes, the Sacred Beasts are a great way to do an end game. True, avoiding their true summoning conditions sucks, but it happens, lol. It's alright to mention my card/rule inconsistencies. When I do it, usually it is due that I couldn't work under the actual rules, or I just chose to ignore them, or just forgot, lol. Thanks for the review!**

**Knives91: Thank you. I'm glad you like the duel thus far.**

**Alright, that's all of the reviews. These seem to get longer and longer with time, but that's all good. I like writing out the reviews. It's always fun and interesting to do. At any rate, I hope everyone has a Happy New Year! Enjoy!**

**Chapter 74**

Glancing at Illidan while drawing his next card, Jaden encouragingly said "Don't get bummed out Illidan, because I have a strategy to take him down a few pegs this turn."

"I'd like to see you try boy." Legato smartly remarked.

Smiling, Jaden held up a card from his hand, saying "With pleasure. I'll kick things off this turn by sacrificing Bubbleman and Clayman to summon Elemental Hero Neos (2500/2000)!"

Both the blue warrior with a cape and the large round grey warrior vanished into a flash of light. Above the field, a flash of light appeared, and suddenly a powerful white warrior with a slicked back horn on his head and spikes coming out from his elbow joints appeared. He had a bit of red lining on his body, along with a bit of blue as well. On his chest was a blue circle.

"Now Neos, merge with Flare Scarab to create Elemental Hero Flare Neos (2500/2000)!"

Both the white warrior and the bug-man leapt into the air, with the bug-man hovering over top of the white warrior. Slowly, the two moved closer to one another and till a blinding white light filled the field. When the light died down, both warriors were gone, but a new one was left in their wake. This new one had mostly black armor, with some blotches of orange. His body looked similar to the bug-man, but not quite. On his back was a pair of bug shell like wings, and his head had a beetle like pinchers for a helmet.

"Thanks to Flare Neos's special ability, he gains 400 attack points per a spell and trap on the field. Right now, you have one and Illidan has one, meaning Flare Neos gains 800 attack points (2500 + 400 2 3300/2000)."

Flames began surrounding the black and orange creature, seemingly licking at his body while his strength increased.

"But I'm not done yet, for I have a card to add to his. I play the field spell Skyscraper!"

Tapping the end slot on his Duel Disk, Jaden placed the card into the slot, which instantly caused the ground to begin changing. Blacktop formed on the ground, along with large buildings shooting up into the sky. The sky darkened till a moon shown above with all the large buildings surrounding everyone.

"In here, when an Elemental Hero is weaker than it's target, they gain 1000 attack points. Plus, since I just added another spell card, Flare Neos gets stronger again (3300 + 400 3700/2000)."

The black and orange warrior was once more surrounded by flames as his body increased in strength.

"Next, I switch Sparkman back to attack mode."

Standing up, the blue and gold warrior took up an offensive stance, seemingly ready to do battle once more.

"Sparkman, take out his Phantasm Token with Static Shockwave!"

Turning his palm towards the weaker version of the large blue and purple monster, the blue and gold warrior released a streak of white lightning straight at the creature. The small blue and purple creature was instantly struck, exploding upon impact.

"Flare Neos, attack Raviel with Flare Blaze (3700 + 1000 4700/2000)!"

Jumping into the air, the black and orange warrior formed a sphere of flames in between his two palms. After a moment of powering up the sphere, the warrior threw it in the direction of the large blue and purple creature. The blast hit the large creature hard, making it immediately burst into flames. There was a tremendous explosion, leaving a large plume of smoke in the air.

Upon his monster returning to his field, Jaden called out "I'm not done battling you yet, for I have another card! I activate the spell Contact Out. This let's me split apart my Elemental Hero Flare Neos back into Elemental Hero Neos (2500/2000) and Neo-Spacian Flare Scarab (500/500)!"

Glowing with a white aura, the black and orange warrior suddenly split apart, revealing the white warrior and the bug-man that had been on the field the turn before.

Glancing towards Illidan with a look of needing help, Illidan nodded, saying "I activate a spell card called Rush Recklessly. This grants Jaden's Neos 700 more attack points for this turn alone (2500 + 700 3200/2000)."

Glowing lightly with a white aura, the white warrior's strength increased a bit more, making him even more formidable.

"Thanks Illidan." Jaden said with a smile. "Neos, take down Hamon with Cosmic Crush (3200 + 1000 4200/2000)!"

Leaping into the air, the white warrior went sailing straight into the large dull yellow creature. Seconds later, the white warrior came sailing straight through the back of the large creature, which howled out in great pain before exploding, sending out yet another huge plume of smoke.

Not waiting for the smoke to clear, Jaden called out "Flare Scarab, attack his Phantom of Chaos now with Flaming Arrow!"

Soaring into the air, the bug-man formed a sphere of hot flames and sent it sailing towards the black sphere. The black sphere was struck head on, with absolutely nowhere to go. In a small tower of flames, the creature vanished, leaving nothing behind on Legato's field other than his trap card.

"Total sweetness, we cleared out his field." Jaden exclaimed.

Smiling at Jaden, Illidan nodded, saying "Well done."

"Thanks, but I couldn't have done it alone." Jaden commented back. Turning his attention to Legato, Jaden continued on, saying "I end my move, so let's see what you've got." (Illidan 500, Jaden 3000; Legato 1500)

Chuckling a bit, Legato stared at the two in front of him. "Impressive, the two of you managed to take down my Legendary Demons." he calmly said.

Becoming more serious, he continued on, saying "But my Legendary Demons aren't done with this duel yet. Not by a long shot."

Picking up his new card, Legato sneered, saying "And here is why it's not over yet! I play the spell Silent Doom, which lets me special summon one monster from my Graveyard to the field in defense mode. I choose my Dark Summons God (0/0)."

Slowly rising up onto the field in a crouching position was the strange looking creature that had large red wings with grey in them and a strange head.

Both Illidan and Jaden had a small sweat drop roll down the side of their faces. "You know what that means." Illidan muttered to Jaden.

"Yeah, he's about to bring them back again." Jaden responded.

Evilly smirking, Legato smugly said "Exactly. I send Dark Summons God to the Graveyard, allowing me to bring back my three Legendary Demons! Rise up again Hamon (4000/4000), Raviel (4000/4000), and Uria (6000/6000)!"

Without warning, a tremendous lightning burst struck the field behind Legato. At the same time, a large purple cloud formed beside of the strike, and finally, a tower of flames appeared to the other side of the lightning.

From the lightning, the large dull yellow creature reformed. On it's left, the large blue and purple creature appeared, and to the right of the dull yellow creature, the large red dragon like creature appeared. All three roared loudly, sending out shockwaves to the field.

"Of course, I can't attack this turn, but no need to. Fools, soon you shall feel the wrath of my Legendary Demons!" (Illidan 500, Jaden 3000; Legato 1500)

Gazing at the three creatures before him, Illidan pondered on what to do. "_Those things are so hard to destroy. And with only 500 life points, I have to be extremely careful. I have to figure out a way to take those things down, but how?_"

Staring at his deck, Illidan thought for a moment what to do. "_I have to have faith that me and Jaden can win this. We have to, or Marie's fate is sealed, as well as the world's. No, I won't give up, not now!_"

Looking up confidently, he drew his card and examined it before saying "Alright, to start things off, I activate Royal Magical Library's special ability. Since Jaden played two spell cards last turn, and you activated one too, my Library gained enough Spell Counters to activate it's effect. I'll remove all three counters, allowing me to draw one card."

Picking up a new card, Illidan continued on, saying "I activate the spell Graceful Charity, allowing me to draw three new cards, but I have to discard two when I'm finished."

Drawing three new cards, he looked over them for a moment before saying "I discard my Dark Magician of Chaos and Magical Blast."

Placing the two cards into his Graveyard Slot, Illidan lightly smirked. "Time I activated this card, my spell Monster Reborn. With this, I can bring back Dark Magician of Chaos (2800/2600)!"

A flaming pentagram instantly formed onto the field with smoke coming out of the middle of it. Rising slowly in the middle of the pentagram was a mage with black tight fitting armor, wearing a strange mage's hat, and held a long black staff in his right hand. His skin color was blue, and he had some black markings. While rising up, his eyes remained closed. Finally fully on the field, the mage opened his eyes, revealing yellow corneas with red irises. Upon opening his eyes, the flames extinguished, seemingly showing his strength.

"Sweetness, you summoned your Dark Magician of Chaos!" Jaden happily commented.

Staring at the mage, Marie lightly gasped. "_He actually managed to reclaim his Dark Magician of Chaos. That means he actually defeated Anubis. Maybe this is just what Illidan needed to win this duel._"

Smiling at his mage in front of him, Illidan called out "Thanks to me bringing my mage back, his special ability activates. I can now transfer one spell card from my Graveyard to my hand. My choice is Pot of Greed."

Slowly, the spell card slid out of the Graveyard Slot and into Illidan's waiting hand. Picking it up, Illidan showed it to Legato, saying "I activate Pot of Greed now, so two new cards for me."

Picking up two cards, Illidan once more called out "Next, I activate Royal Magical Library's effect. I've played three spells this turn, meaning it has three Spell Counters. I remove all of it's counters, and get another card."

Drawing one more card, he smiled, saying "I play the spell Mirage of Nightmare. Thanks to this, during your Standby Phase, I can draw till I hold four cards, but on my Standby Phase, I have to discard the same number of cards I drew. To end my turn, I'll place these three remaining cards face down. That'll just about do it for me." (Illidan 500, Jaden 3000; Legato 1500)

"Nice moves Illidan." Jaden curtly commented. Drawing his card, he continued, saying "I'll switch all my monsters to defense, and throw down a face down. That'll be it for me." (Illidan 500, Jaden 3000; Legato 1500)

"You two are pathetic." Legato snipped as he drew his card. Examining it, he smirked evilly, saying "It's time I finished you off Illidan…"

Cutting in, Illidan called out "Not before my Mirage of Nightmare kicks in. Thanks to it's effect, I can now draw four cards."

While Illidan picked them up, Legato only chuckled, saying "They won't help you, for this is the end! Uria, destroy his pathetic Dark Magician of Chaos with Hyper Blaze and end him!"

Roaring loudly, the red snake like dragon opened it's jaws, allowing flames to lick the insides of hit's mouth.

Before the flames could be released though, Illidan pointed at a face down card, saying "Not happening Legato, thanks to this spell card! Go Magical Hats, protect and conceal my monsters!"

Materializing onto the field above the black armor clad magician was a black top hat with a checker pattern above the brim and a big yellow question mark on it. Slowly, the hat slid down to the field and covered the mage. The hat then slid out, creating copies of itself and concealing the other three monsters. The four hats slid back together, and once more flexed out to four hats again.

Growling irritably, Legato angrily spat "Fine Illidan, hide like a coward! Uria, destroy the hat on the far left with Hyper Blaze!"

Swinging it's head towards the far hat, the large red snake like dragon released a blazing hot stream of flames at the solitary hat. The flames struck that hat hard, incinerating it within moments. Once the hat had burned off, the old man with purple hair and a white trench coat appeared, but vanished within the flames.

"So much for Magical Scientist." Illidan mused.

Lightly growling with frustration, Legato pointed at another hat, yelling "Raviel, cleave up that far right hat with Shimmering Slash!"

Claws glowing with a brilliant light blue color, the large blue and purple creature stepped forward with his right hand pulled back. With a single sweep, the monster slashed one of the top hats with his claws, instantly shattering the hat and revealing the weaker purple armored mage with a large gash on it's body, which instantly exploded.

"Sorry, but wrong monster again." Illidan smugly said. "Not to mention, you just took out my Apprentice Magician, meaning I can special summon one new level two or lower Spellcaster Type monster from my deck."

Pulling his deck out, Illidan examined it before picking a monster and slapping it horizontally onto his Duel Disk. "This one should do."

Grinding his teeth lightly, Legato began to snap at Illidan, but stopped and smirked. Lightly chuckling, he calmly said "This little game has been amusing Illidan, but I'm afraid it's over."

"How so?" Illidan questioned.

"Whatever monster Hamon strikes will end this duel. I could search for that ridiculous mage again, or I could just destroy your new monster." Legato coolly stated. Shrugging, he simply said "Really, I don't feel like searching for that mage, so I have decided to just finish you for good. Hamon, destroy his new monster with Cerulean Sky Fire!"

Spreading it's wings, the dull yellow creature roared loudly and lifted it's head towards the sky as blue lightning could be seen crackling within it's open jaws. Lowering it's head, the monster shot out a stream of blue lightning at the lone card image. The blast shattered the face down card image, instantly revealing a young female mage with long pink hair up in a pony tail, wearing purple and pink robes with a yellow cord belt, holding a long golden staff with a crescent moon at the top of the staff. The blast quickly destroyed her, leaving nothing behind.

"Thanks for flipping my face down monster Legato. You just brought out my Magician of Faith (300/400), whose flip effect let's me return one spell card from my Grave to my hand. I pick my Pot of Greed." Illidan calmly said.

While Illidan took the card sliding out of his Graveyard into his waiting hand, Legato chuckled darkly, saying "You are truly a fool. Have you forgotten that Hamon's special ability now takes a 1000 of your life points when he destroys one of your monsters? Well, let me remind you now!"

Letting out a massive roar, the dull yellow dragon released a stream of blue lightning into the sky. Darkening a bit, the sky around the city began to fill with lightning. Thunder boomed as the strikes got closer and closer, seemingly hunting Illidan.

Without warning, lightning poured from the sky down straight at Illidan. Seeing this, both Illidan and Jaden at the same moment tapped a button on both their Duel Disks. The lightning struck the field, making everyone shield their eyes from the intense flash.

"Game over Illidan. Farewell you fool." Legato coolly said.

Slowly, the flash faded, but instead of revealing Illidan on the ground, it revealed him still standing with a pink spongy like barrier surrounding him.

"WHAT!?" Legato bellowed with great anger. "HOW DID YOU SURVIVE!?"

Smirking, Jaden called out "I had a little to do with it. When Hamon's effect was about to strike Illidan, I activated a trap known as Cocoon Veil. This handy trap reduced all the damage Illidan was about to receive to zero due that I got rid of my Chrysalis Birdy for it. Oh yeah, since I did that, I can now special summon from my deck the evolved form of Chrysalis Birdy, better known as Neo-Spacian Air Hummingbird (800/600) in defense mode."

Immediately upon saying that, the pink barrier around Illidan vanished while on Jaden's field, a red bird warrior with white wings on his back, a long bill, and talon like hands appeared in a crouching stance with his arms crossed.

"Oh yeah, Legato, I also had a hand in this save also. You see, when you attacked, I activated my face down spell card, Emergency Provisions. Thanks to it, I gained a 1000 life points by sacrificing my Mirage of Nightmare card, meaning even without Jaden's help, I'd have made it. Tough luck I'm afraid." Illidan slyly said with a grin.

Growling with frustration, Legato jammed a card into his spell/trap card zone, saying "I place this face down and end!" (Illidan 1500, Jaden 3000; Legato 1500)

"Thanks for the save Jaden." Illidan kindly said with a nod.

Smiling back at Illidan, Jaden gave a thumb up, saying "No problem Illidan. Like I said earlier, we've got to stick together to win."

"Right." Illidan said, returning the smile too.

Staring at the field, Chazz mused "Those two are a good team."

"I'll say. Nothing Legato throws at them seems to slow them down." Alexis commented. Frowning, she added "I just hope it stays this way."

Tied to the obelisk, Marie softly smiled, although grimaced in pain immediately. "_Those two are taking care of one another and acting like a true team. I only hope Illidan and Jaden can hang on and win this duel._"

Without warning, a small flashback of her dream from earlier in the year came to her. It was the dream she had had of Illidan losing his duel with someone who looked like Legato, and Illidan had had Anubis on the field. She had been unable to move, and only able to watch.

The flashback quickly wore off as her mind was quickly troubled. "_No, it can't happen now. Please, tell me that wasn't a vision! But all the facts point to it now that it was. Please let me be wrong! Let him survive!_"

On the field, Illidan glanced at his deck and pondered on it for a moment. "_We've managed to stall for more time, but that's all so far. Each turn, Legato keeps coming back with a new assault, and each turn we fight him back, but we're going nowhere. What I need now is the cards to end this._"

Drawing his card, Illidan examined it and smirked. "_Perfect, exactly what I needed._"

"I kick things off this turn by playing Pot of Greed once more, drawing two new cards."

Picking up two cards, Illidan continued on, saying "Next, it's time to change the scenery. Sorry Jaden, I know the city is your kind of thing, but it's gonna have to go."

"It's all good. Go for it." Jaden commented.

Nodding, Illidan held his Duel Disk vertical and tapped the end, causing a slot to shoot out. "I activate the field spell Chaos Control!"

With gentleness, Illidan placed the card within the slot, which immediately shut. The sky above the field immediately clouded in, with stormy clouds appearing. The large buildings and the blacktop immediately vanished, only to be replaced by a desert wasteland with a cave near Illidan. The storm above the group seemed to grow more and more fierce by the moment, with lightning flashing and thunder booming.

"Thanks to this field spell, I can special summon a monster with the word 'Chaos' or 'Envoy' in it's name once per a turn from my deck, hand, Graveyard, or removed from play pile. The major drawback is that I can't move to my Draw Phase, but I won't need it. I'll kick things off by bringing my Dark Magician of Chaos out of hiding, meaning Magical Hats are gone."

Both top hats remaining slowly vanished, revealing the black armored mage and the octagon building, with the mage ready to strike.

"Next, I'll use the power of Chaos Control to bring out from my hand the beginning of your end, Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning (3000/2500)!"

The intensity of the storm grew much fiercer while the cave on the field glowed lightly within. Without warning, lightning struck the field to the left of the black armored mage. From the lightning strike came a warrior clad in black ebony armor with a powerful sword and shield in hand.

"Now it is time to meet the end of the beginning, so I remove from play both my Apprentice Magician and Magician of Faith, allowing me to special summon my Chaos Emperor Dragon – Envoy of the End (3000/2500)!"

Rapidly appearing onto the field, a large black dragon with an orange mane, powerful clawed hands and feet, and a large set of black wings materialized. Letting out a mighty roar, the dragon showed it's true strength was much more than it seemed.

Smirking lightly, Illidan called out "Since I have three of my Chaos monsters out, Chaos Control's special ability kicks in. By sending it to the Graveyard, I can destroy all monsters on your field."

The storm grew even more fierce as lightning began to make a path towards the large creatures on Legato's field. After a moment of striking near them, the lightning struck all three of the creatures, making each howl in pain before exploding at long last.

"By the way, there is one other effect of Chaos Control you should know of. When it goes to the Graveyard due to it's own effect, all three of my Chaos monsters are allowed to direct attack you in the same turn! It's over Legato! Direct attack with Chaos Slash, Chaos Scepter Blast, and Chaos Blaster!"

All three of the monsters nodded back towards Illidan and launched into the air. Pulling his sword in front of himself, the warrior sent energy flaring up the blade before sending out a blade of energy from the sword. Twirling his staff, the black armored mage fired a black sphere of magical energy straight for Legato. Last to fire it's blast, the large black dragon launched a black sphere of flames.

Darkly chuckling at the oncoming blasts, Legato pointed a finger at Illidan, saying "You are a fool. Do you honestly think you can stop me with those monsters!? Watch and learn what true power is! I reveal my trap, Call of the Haunted, returning to my field Uria, Lord of Searing Flames (6000/6000)!"

A tower of flames instantly shot up onto the field. Coming from the tower of flames was the large snake like red dragon, which let out a massive roar, instantly quelling the flames.

"Why bother Legato? I'm direct attacking due to the effect of Chaos Control, so playing a monster doesn't help." Illidan calmly asked.

Sneering, Legato nodded and said "True, but did you forget my trap card, Spirit Barrier? So long as it's on the field, and I have a monster, my life points are untouchable!"

Eyes growing wide, Illidan watched in horror as the golden barrier materialized in front of Legato. The blasts were easily absorbed by the barrier, which held strong and didn't even crack.

Grumbling in frustration, Illidan called out "I end my turn." (Illidan 1500, Jaden 3000; Legato 1500)

Picking up a card, Jaden examined it before saying "I'll throw down a face down, and that's it for me." (Illidan 1500, Jaden 3000; Legato 1500)


	75. Chapter 75: Demons and Anubis, Pt 5

**Hey there everybody! Well, the last day or so has been pretty nice. Yesterday, I spent about all day home, watching it snow, lol. Nothing else really happened, other than I took my mate to work and back.**

**Writing wise, yesterday was a great day for **_**Another**_**. I made great headway, with me completing a chapter and getting part of another chapter done. For now, things are moving along, which is what I wanted. **_**MtM**_** is still moving along too, so no worries there.**

**Last time, the duo of Illidan and Jaden nearly won with Illidan using his Chaos Control to nearly take out Legato. At the last moment, Legato saved himself with his Spirit Barrier, putting the duo in a tough spot. Now they face off with Uria, who alone has 6000 attack points. Can Illidan and Jaden hang on to defeat Legato, or is Legato merely biding his time to destroy them both?**

**Alright, time again for the greatest part of Wednesday! That's right, it's review time!**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Yeah, Illidan and Jaden both are in big trouble due that they can't keep the Sacred Beasts from returning. As for anime on the airwaves, eh, I don't know. CN is about the only network that I know of right now with any anime that I watch. I'm sure there are more out there, but where, I don't know. Thanks for the review!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. I know, the dubs just suck for GX. I saw about them saying that instead of dying they went to the stars. I'm just waiting to see how badly they do screw up Supreme King Jaden. I hate that they screwed up Viper's history and death though. I think that it was far better than what 4Kids came up with… Very true, Illidan depends a lot on Chaos Control, but it has it's bad side effects, like no Draw Phase. Thanks for the Happy New Year, and again for the review!**

**DuelistBlake1852: LOL! I hate driving across Kentucky myself. I have some friends that live on the opposite side of it than me. Sheesh, I never knew the state was so wide till I was like almost there. I got out of West Virginia in like 2 hours, but it took 6 to get to their house! (/Shudders at the thought of this summer's trip.\) Oh well, it's well worth it to see some friends I suppose. Thanks for the Happy New Year, and same to you. Yes, Jaden had some Contact Fusion finally, and it kicked some butt while it was out. And true, Cocoon Veil did come into effect. Lol, I know, they're a tough choice to see who you like the most. Yes, Illidan nearly had Legato, but Spirit Barrier once again ruined that plan. LOL! Nice to see someone else has a split personality, hehe. Thanks for the review!**

**If I missed anyone, I'm sorry. site is acting odd. It wouldn't give me my reviews for some reason, so I used my email updates to do the reviews, so if I missed anyone, I do truly apologize. At any rate, thank you all for your reviews. I enjoy each and every one of them. I continue to hope to see more each time. Thank you all. At any rate, I need to go now, so enjoy this chapter. Later!**

**Chapter 75**

Sneering at the pair before him while drawing, Legato coolly said "You two are pathetic. Nothing in your decks can stop me, and you know it be true."

Lightly growling at this, Illidan calmed himself and smiled, saying "You're wrong Legato. We will take you down, no matter what."

"Exactly! Don't you know the good guys always win, not the bad!?" Jaden chimed in.

Darkly chuckling, Legato remarked "Is that so? Well then, I'll have to go against convention! I activate Card of Demise. Thanks to this spell, I can draw till I hold five cards in my hand."

Picking up five cards, Legato smirked once more and said "Things are about to get worse for the two of you. I play the spell Mystik Wok, allowing me to sacrifice Uria and add his attack points to my life points."

The large red dragon roared as it slowly transformed into an energy stream, which flowed straight into Legato's Duel Disk. Soon enough, the dragon was gone, and Legato's life points increased.

Lightly growling, Illidan glared at Legato. "_He only had 1500 life points before and was holding us, now he has 7500, meaning we still can't touch him! There has to be a way to bring him down, there just has to!_"

Laughing at Illidan's glare, Legato calmly said "Now, now Illidan, no need for that kind of glare. After all, I'm not through yet. It's time I rid the field of your creatures, and to do it, I activate Dark Hole! This mighty spell will destroy all monsters on our fields."

"No…" Illidan mumbled in shock.

"Not so fast there big mouth, I have a spell card! It's the same one you played a moment ago, so go Mystik Wok! I'll sacrifice Elemental Hero Neos for it, meaning I gain 2500 life points." Jaden called out.

The white warrior instantly transformed into a stream of energy and flowed into Jaden's Duel Disk, raising his life points immediately.

"No matter, your other monsters are gone." Legato pointed out.

A large black hole instantly materialized onto the field and began sucking in all of the creatures. All of the monsters, including Illidan's stronger black creatures were sucked in, along with Jaden's remaining creatures, leaving an empty field behind.

"Now that they're gone, I can do this. I discard the trap Final Attack Orders, allowing me to bring back Uria, Lord of Searing Flames (6000 + 2 1000 8000/8000)!"

A large tower of flames immediately shot up from the ground, seemingly reaching into the highest parts of the sky. Emerging from the flames was the large red snake like creature, which roared loudly, sending out terror across the field.

Laughing manically, Legato asked "What shall I do now? With both of you wide open to a direct attack, this duel will have one less person in it."

Turning to Illidan, Legato coolly said "I could get rid of you now. You've been a thorn in my side for a while, and to leave you alive would be dangerous. Of course, Marie and this boy will be devastated, but I'm willing to take that risk."

"But…" Legato began as he turned to Jaden. "I should destroy you just as well boy. You have been a resourceful one, and have so far been more trouble than I thought you'd ever be. You are truly powerful, hence I can't ignore that. Then there is also the fact that taking you out would cause great pain to Illidan."

Closing his eyes for a moment, Legato soon began to darkly chuckle. Opening them once more, he coldly said "I choose to make you suffer Illidan! Uria, obliterate that brat with Hyper Blaze!"

Letting out a massive roar, the large red dragon threw back it's head as flames licked it's lips.

Quickly pointing at his face down card, Illidan called out "Sorry to disappoint you Legato, but I won't allow you to harm Jaden! Go Spellbinding Circle!"

Without warning, a large a green circle with strange golden symbols with formed on the top, left, right, and bottom formed, with a white question mark like symbol in the center appeared above Illidan's side of the field. The circle without warning quickly flew across the field and slid over the dragon's head and around it's neck. Upon doing this, it wrapped itself around the dragon, stopping the flames immediately in it's jaws.

"What have you done to Uria!?" Legato demanded.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan remarked "I stopped him from attacking. You see, my trap, Spellbinding Circle, stops your attack. From now on, so long as my circle is on the field, Uria can't attack or switch it's mode."

Grumbling, Legato smirked, saying "Very well Illidan. I shall place this card face down and end my turn." (Illidan 1500, Jaden 5500; Legato 7500)

Preparing to draw his next card, Illidan stopped and smirked, saying "I activate the effect of a card in my Graveyard. This spell card is known as Magical Blast, and I can return it to my hand instead of drawing."

Watching with bewilderment as Illidan picked up the card that slid out of his Graveyard, Legato darkly chuckled. "You've already given up I see." he taunted.

Placing the card back in his hand, Illidan shook his head and slyly said "Not quite. You see, there is a reason for doing this. Allow me to show you why! I play my Spell Reproduction spell card. To activate it, I must discard two spell cards to my Graveyard. My choices are Magical Blast and Polymerization."

Pulling both cards from his hand, Illidan gently laid them in his Graveyard Slot, where the two were quickly pulled in. "Next, I get to transfer one spell card from my Graveyard to my hand, and my choice is Pot of Greed."

Picking the card up as it quickly slid out, Illidan showed it to Legato, saying "I now play it, meaning I draw two new cards."

Grabbing two cards, Illidan brought them up to examine only to gasp. "_No way! I drew both at once!?_"

Watching Illidan eye the cards for a few moments, the group all began to ponder what could make Illidan think about his cards so much.

"_I bet he drew nothing good._" Chazz grumbled.

Staring at Illidan, Alexis silently said in her mind "_Please be the cards he needs to end this nightmare._"

"_Illidan, did you draw something to help us win?_" Jaden pondered.

Watching Illidan, Marie silently hoped he drew what he needed. "_Please Illidan, have what you need to end this. I know you can do it. I believe in you. We both do._"

"Well?" Legato chimed in irritably.

Tearing his view away from his cards, Illidan smirked and said "It's time I showed you this card. I earned it several years back, not to mention, you and this card have a history together. I think it's time the two of you got reacquainted."

A small sweat drop slipped down Legato's face as he asked "You don't mean…"

"I do mean it! It's time you faced the creature that once sealed you away! Come forth my mighty Egyptian God Card, the almighty Anubis, The God of Life and Death (2000/2000)!" Illidan cried out as he slapped the card to his Duel Disk, causing multicolored electricity to sizzle off of it.

The sky darkened even further than it had all day, with lightning and thunder filling the sky. Lightning suddenly struck the ground, causing a large sarcophagus with a dog head where the face of a person should be to appear. The sarcophagus slowly began to open, allowing a powerful white aura to flare out. In slow motion, the door seemed to finally open on the sarcophagus, and out stepped a man with a black dog head where a normal human head would sit. His muscles were tone, his skin bronzed, and he was dressed in ancient Egyptian garb. His eyes flashed white as his aura continued to flow out.

Legato stared with a frightened look at the powerful creature before him, his eyes seemingly full of past memories. Shaking his head, he glared at the creature, saying "I will not be defeated by a decrepit old creature! That Egyptian God is far weaker than he was six and half millennia ago, so don't think I will bow down before it!"

Smirking at this, Illidan calmly said "I wouldn't be fooled by first impressions. This Egyptian God is far stronger than you think and more than likely remember. Allow me to demonstrate."

Closing his eyes, Illidan began concentrating, seemingly summoning up some of his strength. Slowly opening his eyes, he slowly said "I activate one of Anubis's most devastating effects. I shall give up 1000 life points in order to destroy all of your monsters. Anubis, let my strength become your own!"

A dark aura instantly surrounded Illidan, making him grunt out in pain as he sank down a bit. He remained standing, but struggled to. As Illidan's body glowed with the dark aura, the powerful creature's body began to glow with it's brilliant white aura. Without warning, the brilliant white aura suddenly had a black aura flare up within it, slowly changing it from brilliant white to a powerful dark aura. With the change, the color of the body of the mighty creature began to change as well. The whiteness vanished, and suddenly the creature's body began to turn solid black. Finally, a dark aura surrounded the mighty monster and it's body was a solid dark black with brilliant white eyes.

Struggling to stand back up fully, Illidan slowly said "Now that Anubis has my own strength, I can wipe out your Sacred Beast. Anubis, take down Uria with Judgment of Death!"

Holding it's hand up at the large red dragon creature, the mighty black dog headed man released a black sphere of energy. The sphere hit home on the large red dragon, making it howl in an inhuman howl for what seemed forever. Finally, the howl died down and the large snake like dragon fell to the ground with a huge thud, instantly smashing into millions of pieces, but shaking the ground tremendously. Upon the creature hitting the ground, the powerful black creature's aura returned to white, as did part of his body.

Legato's eyes told the story, as fear, terror, and many other horrified emotions fell out of them. He was lightly shaking, as if consumed by what he had just seen.

"I'm not done with this turn yet Legato! It's time you start paying for your crimes, and it begins now! Anubis, direct attack with Judgment of Death!"

Raising his right hand, the powerful creature released a white sphere of energy, which quickly sailed across the field. Waking from his fear, Legato stared at the sphere coming on and squared himself up to take it on. The blast hit him hard, making him fall to one knee, panting hard.

"I'll place this card face down and end my turn." (Illidan 500, Jaden 5500; Legato 5500)

Smiling great big, Jaden gave Illidan a big thumbs up and exclaimed "Sweet moves Illidan!"

"Thanks, but this duel isn't over yet Jaden." Illidan commented back.

Nodding, Jaden said with a smile "True, but that move turned things around. Now it's up to me to keep thing moving!"

Picking up a card quickly, Jaden smiled once more, saying "I play the spell The Warrior Returning Alive, which lets me transfer a Warrior Type monster from my Grave to my hand. I pick this one, my Elemental Hero Bubbleman."

At a snail's pace, the monster card slid out of the Graveyard Slot and into Jaden's waiting hand. Once in hand, he slapped it to his Duel Disk, saying "Now it's time I play him, so welcome back Bubbleman (800/1200)!"

In a spray of bubbles, the man in a blue costume outfit with a long white cape reappeared onto the field.

"Since Bubbleman was the last card in my hand, he was a special summon. Also, due that he's all alone on my field, I get to draw two new cards."

Quickly picking up two new cards, Jaden smiled even more, saying "Sweetness! I play the equip spell Bubble Blaster, raising my Bubbleman's attack points by 800 (800 + 800 1600/1200)!"

Appearing above the field, a bazooka with what looked like a container holding bubbles in it fell towards the ground and into the waiting hero's hands. Taking a one kneed position with the water bazooka aimed, the monster let out a small battle cry, showing his readiness to fight.

"Next up, I play the spell Dark Factory of Mass Production, letting me return two Normal Type monsters from my Grave to my hand. The two I pick are Elemental Heroes Sparkman and Clayman."

Slowly, the pair of monster cards slid back out of the Graveyard Slot. Picking the two up, Jaden smiled, saying "How about a warm welcome for an old friend, so Elemental Hero Sparkman (1600/1400), you're on!"

A small electrical storm without warning flared up, from which the blue and gold warrior with wing like structures on his back appeared.

"Sparkman, go reintroduce yourself with Static Shockwave!"

Leaping into the air, the gold and blue warrior launched an electrical blast of energy from his right palm. Legato shrank back slightly from the blast, making him grunt out in pain.

"I'm not through yet with introductions, so Bubbleman, hit him with Bubble Bursting Slam!"

Taking aim, the white caped warrior launched a stream of bubbles from his bazooka at Legato. He stood there, taking the hit, seemingly unfazed by the strikes.

"Gee, you could at least flinch a bit." Jaden commented. "That does it for me for this turn." (Illidan 500, Jaden 5500; Legato 2300)

Glaring at the pair, Legato drew his next card, but he darkly began chuckling. "You two shall pay for last turn. To begin things, I activate my face down card, the spell A Feather of the Phoenix. By discarding a card from my hand, I can return one card to the top of my deck. I'll send this, my Broww, Huntsman of Dark World."

Placing the monster card onto the Graveyard Slot, the card was slowly dragged in. "Now, I return this, my Chaos Form, to the top of my deck."

Gradually, the card slid out of the slot and into Legato's hand, who took it and placed it on top of his deck. "Since I just discarded Broww, Huntsman of Dark World, his effect activates, allowing me to draw a new card from my deck."

Smirking as he drew, Legato calmly said "Next, I play Graceful Charity, allowing me to draw three new cards, so long as I discard two."

Picking up two cards, Legato smirked evilly, saying "I discard my two copies of Broww, Huntsman of Dark World. Thanks to their special ability though, I draw two cards to replace the loss."

Tossing two cards into the Graveyard Slot, Legato smirked as the cards were sucked in. He then grabbed two cards from his deck and smirked once more.

"It's time I showed you two what true power is. I activate the spell Premature Burial, forcing me to pay 800 life points."

A dark aura instantly surrounded Legato, but he never flinched as his strength left. "Thanks to this card, I can now bring back my Dark Summons God (0/0) in attack mode."

Slowly rising up onto the field, the strange looking creature that had large red wings with grey in them and a strange head spread it's wings to take up an offensive position.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan pointed at the creature, saying "That was very foolish Legato. By summoning your monster, you've triggered Anubis's special ability. He now can blast your creature with a blast of pure energy that will drain your monster of 2000 attack points, with the difference coming out of your life points. You lose, so Anubis, wipe out that thing with Energy Drain!"

Raising his left hand, the dog headed creature opened it's palm and began sending energy into it. Gradually, a sphere of white energy formed that looked like a typhoon within it. With little effort, the dog headed creature released the sphere straight at the strange looking red winged creature.

Smirking, Legato calmly said "Not quite Illidan. I activate the spell known was Mirage Spell! With this, I can negate your monster's special ability and instead increase my life points by 2000."

A small rainbow colored barrier appeared in front of the weaker red winged creature, seemingly shielding it. The white sphere struck the barrier soon enough, causing a shower of rainbow colored sparks to pour off of it. After a few moments of grinding away on it, the blast was reflected towards Legato's Duel Disk, where the blast was slowly sucked into it.

Cursing under his breath, Illidan just glared at Legato, who chuckled, asking in a taunt "You didn't think it would be that easy to get rid of me, now did you? Well, I hope not, because I'm not done with you yet. I activate Dark Summons God's special ability, meaning I can sacrifice him now to bring back my Sacred Beasts. Rise up once more Harmon, Lord of Striking Thunder (4000/4000) in defense, Raviel, Lord of Phantasm (4000/4000), and Uria, Lord of Searing Heat (8000/8000)!"

Without warning, the sky darkened once more, causing a large bolt of lightning to strike the ground, while a large purple cloud formed, and finally a huge tower of flames came flowing from the ground. One by one, the large creatures came from their elements, each letting out a soft growl.

Scowling for a moment, Illidan suddenly lightly chuckled and said "That was a foolish mistake."

"How so?" Legato taunted.

Smirking, Illidan calmly remarked "Did you forget Anubis? He now drains 2000 points from each of their modes!"

Holding up his left palm, the dog headed creature formed three spheres of swirling white energy. His eyes flashed white, signaling the three spheres to launch. Each sphere crashed into their intended targets, making the creatures howl out in pain (4000/2000) (2000/4000) (6000/8000).

Lightly growling, Legato scowled at Illidan, but soon softly smirked. "No matter. I activate this spell, Magical Stone Excavation, which has me discard two cards from my hand. I send these two to the Graveyard, and now I can return a spell from my Graveyard, which I know exactly what I want. I choose my Card of Demise!"

Placing the cards into his Graveyard Slot, Legato impatiently watched them slide in. Once the two were in, he held his hand out and waited for the new card to slide out, which it did finally.

Smirking evilly, he called out "I first place this card face down, and now play Card of Demise, letting me draw till I hold five cards in my hand."

Picking up five new cards, Legato examined them thoroughly. "I place these three cards face down, and shall end my turn." (Illidan 500, Jaden 5500; Legato 3500)

Softly growling in frustration, Illidan drew his next card and examined it. Glancing over his shoulder at Marie, he noticed she was barely holding her head up, like she was weakening even further than before.

"_I have to end this duel, and soon. Marie seems to be in great pain, like she's using up more energy than she needs to. I don't know what Legato did to her, but I have to save her, no matter what the cost. Even if that means I have to make the ultimate sacrifice to save her, I will._"

"You should be hurrying along Illidan if you wish to save your wife and child." Legato chimed in.

Looking at Legato with a confused expression, Illidan asked "What?"

Smirking evilly, Legato coolly replied "Your wife carries your first child Illidan."

"You lie! Marie would have told me!" Illidan snapped.

Chuckling darkly, Legato shook his head and coolly said "She didn't know till she was under my care. Heh, she had no idea she was till I was healing her from the effects of the poison. Imagine the shock she received when she found this out."

Staring in shock, Illidan shook his head and argued back with "You're lying."

"She's exhausted Illidan. Think of why she would be. She is protecting the child with a barrier, filtering out the poison so that the child may live. Why else would she be so exhausted by now?" Legato slyly asked.

Looking in the direction of Marie, Illidan reached out with his Shadow Powers, attempting to find out if Legato spoke the truth. Sensing Marie, he examined her body, finding she was focusing her powers on a certain area. She seemed to be forming a barrier, as if protecting something.

"_He... he wasn't lying! Marie is pregnant, meaning she's exerting all her energy on the barrier! No, I don't want to lose two people I love, even though I don't know one._"

Steeling his resolve, Illidan looked back at Legato with a glare of anger. "You will pay for harming my family." he coldly hissed.

"You don't worry me. You're nothing compared to me Illidan." Legato coolly remarked.

"We'll see." Illidan snapped. "I activate this, my trap card, Call of the Haunted! With it, I bring back Magical Scientist (300/300)."

The older man with purple hair, a set of goggles, a white lab coat, and a yellow set of robes instantly reappeared onto the field.

"Next, I summon Skilled White Magician (1700/1900)!"

A mage in white robes and cloak with a white hood and staff appeared onto the field in a crouching position. On his cloak, there were three half spheres: one on each shoulder, with one on his chest.

Sneering, Legato said "Thanks to summoning your monster, Raviel's effect kicks in, allowing me to special summon a Phantasm Token (1000/1000) in defense."

Appearing beside of the large blue and purple creature was a miniature version of itself with it's arms crossed.

"What do you plan on doing with those two weak monsters?" Legato coolly asked.

"I plan on beating you!" Illidan gruffly commented back. "I sacrifice both to Anubis, thus activating another of his special abilities. When I make a double sacrifice, his points become infinite!"

Holding out both hands, the dog headed creature began sucking in the energy of the two mages. Both began to glow with a brilliant white aura as their bodies began to fade away. Bit by bit, their energy became the powerful creature's, whose aura began to flare up with a brilliant white light. Soon enough, the pair of mages vanished, leaving the mighty dog headed creature alone with his white aura flaring wildly.

"Anubis, end this duel by attacking Raviel with your Judgment of Death!"

Lifting both arms up to turn both palms towards the large blue and purple creature, the dog headed monster's palms began to glow with a blinding white light. In an instant, a beam of pure white light was fired straight at the large blue and purple creature.


	76. Chapter 76: Sacrifice, Pt 1

**Hello again. Well, the last day or so has been rather quiet. Tuesday, Wednesday, and a little of Thursday, we had to deal with fresh snow. Tuesday night wasn't too bad. I took my mate to work that day, and picked her up. Wednesday though, it was bad in the morning, but by afternoon, the weather had somewhat cleared up enough, along with the roads. I took my mate to work again, but going home from work that night was interesting. We had more snow, which made driving home and out to get my mate interesting to say the least. Thursday morning wasn't so bad, but the roads were once again covered. That evening, things were cleared up. All told, we probably had 4 inches of snow, but with heavy winds blowing it everywhere, it's hard to tell, for sure. It was ankle deep, that much is for sure, lol. Today, my mate is off for a job interview. I hope she gets it. I'd love for her to.**

**Writing wise, **_**Another **_**and **_**MtM**_** are both moving along nicely. Both me and ardee are working at a part of **_**MtM**_**, making things move along rather well. As for when **_**Another **_**will be released, I'm still hopeful this month. We'll have to see, but you never know.**

**Last time, Illidan and Jaden continued their onslaught against Legato, only to once more find more trouble. Legato once again has all 3 Legendary Demons out, making it nearly impossible to destroy them. With all hope looking lost, Illidan comes through and summoned Anubis. With Anubis's effect in play, it now has infinite attack points. Could this be the end of Legato, or will he manage to hang on once more?**

**Ok, moving on, time for reviews!**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Heh, true, it could be a bad thing for Illidan summoning Anubis, especially with those super powered Sacred Beasts lurking about. Yeah, Legato is a bit of a broken record with the Sacred Beasts, but I guess if it's not broken, don't fix it, hehe. It is true that they are the only thing keeping Illidan and Jaden at bay. If not for them, they would have been all over Legato by now. Glad to hear you've posted a chapter on your new fic. I look forward to reading it when I get some time (**_**MtM**_** and **_**Another**_** keep me busy, plus reading old fics that I've yet to catch up on is taking forever, lol). Thanks for the review!**

**pink-kiss-candy: Lol, yes, Legato is very evil. Thanks for the review.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thank you. Yeah, this duel is like impossible to end. Legato counters everything Illidan and Jaden do, only to have them counter him. This see-saw game has to give sometime though… LOL! Yes, infinite attack never seems to work out for anyone anymore. And yes, it will truly suck to see how badly Supreme King Jaden is screwed up by 4Kids. (/Shudders at thought.\) Thanks for the review!**

**Knives91: Thank you, and here is another chapter!**

**x-knight20: Thank you. Hmm, true might of the Demon Gods? Do you mean the true might of the Legendary Demons? Hehe, I know, silliness to be picky. Thanks for the review.**

**DuelistBlake1852: Very true, Legato has 3 face down cards, but in the face of Anubis's ultimate attack power, would they help? Heh, Legato could get more annoying I'm sure. LOL! You and Yami are interesting together… Hey, I didn't force Yami to lose repeatedly to Illidan, other than in **_**ToP**_** and once in **_**TWS**_**, lol. Thanks for the review!**

**Alright, that's it for the reviews today. I would like to thank all of the people who have recently added my stories to their favorites. It means a lot to see those adds, and I'm very happy you added them. To any who haven't reviewed and do have comments, questions, or just wish to talk with me, feel free to. I invite everyone to review anytime, or even PM me. I enjoy either really. Thank you everyone who does read my story and marks it as a favorite and/or reviews. It means a lot to me.**

**At any rate, sorry for this being out a little late. Work was hectic, plus I had a little reading to do this morning. I hope you all enjoy this story. Have a good weekend!**

**Chapter 76**

Laughing manically, Legato called out "You forgot one thing Illidan. While Hamon is on the field in defense, you may only attack him."

The large dull yellow creature instantly took up a defensive stance in front of the large blue and purple creature, seemingly shielding it.

"And you forget the power of Anubis. His strength will not only destroy your monster, but every single monster on your field. It's over!" Illidan countered.

Sneering, Legato shook his head and replied "Not so long as I have this, my trap, Astral Barrier!"

With the trap card revealed, both the large blue and purple creature and the dull yellow creature moved out of the way, allowing the blast to head straight for Legato.

"NO!" Illidan exclaimed in shock.

Smirking at Illidan's shock, Legato coolly said "Whenever Astral Barrier is in play, I can redirect the attack to my life points."

"But that's insane!" Jaden chimed in. "You're basically signing your own life away!"

Darkly chuckling, Legato shook his head. "Not quite brat. Did you forget about Spirit Barrier? Since it's still in play, I lose no life points!"

The powerful beam of blinding white light instantly struck a golden barrier that formed in front of Legato, causing a brilliant display of lights to flare up while the blast grinded against the barrier. A few moments passed before finally, the beam fizzled out, leaving the golden barrier behind, but with many numerous cracks formed in it.

"See, you cannot destroy me ever Illidan!" Legato smugly said.

Growling with frustration, Illidan sighed, saying "I must unfortunately end my turn." (Illidan 500, Jaden 5500; Legato 3500)

Drawing a card, Jaden slightly smiled. "It's time I bring those barriers down, and I have just the card for it. I play the spell R – Righteous Justice. Now for each Elemental Hero on my field, I get to destroy a spell/trap card on your field, so I'll take both of those barriers out now!"

The spell card image with a 'R' on it instantly fired a red beam at both of Legato's two trap cards, easily shattering both, which caused the golden barrier that surrounded Legato to shimmer before vanishing altogether.

Shrugging, Legato nonchalantly commented "No matter, I no longer need those cards. Besides, you helped me out too, since those were continuous traps. Uria's power now rises by 2000 (6000 + 2000 8000/8000 + 2000 10000)."

Lightly sighing, Jaden grumbled "Oh well, my bad. I switch Sparkman and Bubbleman to defense, and call it a turn." (Illidan 500, Jaden 5500; Legato 3500)

Quickly drawing his card, Legato examined it before bursting out loud laughing. Regaining control, he smirked evilly and coolly said "This duel has been fun, but it is time to end this game."

"It's not over till you pay for your crimes." Illidan wryly remarked.

Darkly chuckling, Legato smirked again, saying "Not so Illidan, for I have the spell to end it all. I activate the spell that shall destroy you both. I activate Death by Dimensional Fusion!"

Putting his fist under his chin for a moment, Jaden pondered on the card and finally asked "Illidan, have you heard of this card?"

"No, I've not." Illidan calmly replied.

Smirking evilly at the two, Legato coolly said "Then I'll explain it to you. It acts like a fusion card, but different. Now I can merge my three Legendary Demons together by removing them from play in order to create the most sinister creature in all of history! Allow me to present to you Armityle the Chaos Phantom (0/0)!"

All three large creatures on Legato's field instantly vanished from the field while lightning began to stir within the sky, striking the field in front of him. Towers of flames instantly began rising around the lightning strikes, while a thick purple fog formed as well. Slowly, rising from the fog with lightning striking it was a set of yellow nearly see through wings like the large dull yellow creature had had, a set of blue and yellow horns, large red shoulder pads with spikes sticking out, an arm that had the red dragon like creature on it, the other arm corresponding to the large blue and purple creatures, and the rest of the body appeared to be a blend of the three creatures combined into one. Once fully upon the field, the new creature let out a horrendous roar, shaking the entire island.

Staring at the creature, Jaden blurted out "That thing is what the fusion of the three Sacred Beasts is?"

After a moment of silence, Jaden began laughing. "Man, here I was worried there for a moment."

Seeing Illidan not laughing, he frowned and asked "What's wrong Illidan?"

"First impressions aren't everything Jaden." Illidan calmly said, seemingly lost in a daze at the creature before him.

Legato lightly chuckled at this and nodded. "You're right Illidan, first impressions aren't everything."

"Yeah, and you should know, sometimes first impressions are the last." Illidan coolly remarked while closing his eyes. Opening them once more, he pointed at the combination creature, saying "Summoning that thing was foolish because Anubis's special ability kicks in! Go Anubis, wipe that thing out with Energy Drain!"

Raising his left hand, the powerful dog headed creature formed a swirling sphere of white energy. Within a moment, the sphere was at full strength and went flying across the field at the strange combination creature.

Darkly chuckling, Legato smugly said "Don't underestimate Armityle. After all, his special ability kicked in upon me summoning him."

"What special ability might that be?" Illidan calmly asked.

Smirking, Legato pointed at the creature and responded with "During my turn, my monster gains 10,000 attack points (0 + 10000 10000/0)!"

Glowing with a dark black aura, the large combination creature roared loudly, shaking the ground beneath everyone. The only thing on the field seemingly not affected was the mighty dog headed monster.

Lightly grumbling, Illidan called out "Your monster may have 10,000 attack points, but Anubis is about to take 2000 of them (10000 – 2000 8000/0)!"

Upon Illidan saying his words, the white sphere of energy that had been already launched slammed into the large combination creature. A large cloud of smoke rose from the strike, making it difficult to see. Slowly, the smoke settled, revealing the large combination creature was still on the field, but it had numerous scratches and blemishes on it's skin.

Shrugging lightly, Legato coolly said "No matter, Armityle still has plenty of strength left. Of course, Anubis would be one to know about that, now wouldn't it?"

"What are you talking about?" Illidan asked calmly.

Lightly chuckling, Legato remarked "This card once was one of two Egyptian Gods in Egypt."

"It was an Egyptian God?" Jaden questioned.

"Yes, it was. Long ago, only Anubis and Armityle were the only gods of Egypt." Legato calmly explained. "They watched over Egypt for years before a situation arose. An attacking army pounced on Egypt from four directions. With only two gods, all hope of survival seemed lost, till an idea was formed."

Pointing at the combination creature, he continued on. "To combat the situation, the pharaoh of that time decided to split the weaker of the two gods into three separate creatures. Since Armityle was the weakest of the pair, it was chosen. From it's splitting came the three Sacred Beasts. Each of the Sacred Beasts received a portion of Armityle's power, but none of the three compared to Anubis still. Together, with Anubis, the four defeated the oncoming armies."

Stopping for a moment, Legato finally added "Once the situation was over, it was found difficult to remerge the Sacred Beasts back into Armityle, so it was decided they would better serve as guardians of Egypt. This is when the clans of old were formed, and the contests to find out which clan member would defend Egypt."

"I see. So the Sacred Beasts were once one creature, much like how the Egyptian Gods were once one as well." Illidan commented.

"Exactly." Legato coolly stated. "But now, I will end this duel with the forgotten Egyptian God! I activate the trap Return from a Different Dimension. With this card, I must pay half my life points, but I'm allowed to return as many removed from play monsters as possible. I can't think of any better monsters to bring back now than my three Legendary Demons (4000/4000) (4000/4000) (10000/10000)!"

A multicolored rift opened up in the sky, seemingly a gateway to another world. Gradually descending from the rift came the large three creatures that had been on Legato's field only moments before. Each landed onto the field, with each letting out their own roars.

"Don't forget Legato, even though you just brought them back, Anubis weakens them again (2000/4000) (2000/4000) (8000/10000)." Illidan remarked.

Lifting his left hand up once more, the powerful dog headed creature formed three swirling white spheres. His eyes flashed a brilliant white and instantly, the three spheres went sailing off towards the newly arrived creatures. Each was struck by a single sphere, making each creature let out a soft cry of pain.

Sneering, Legato coolly said "Those blasts have little to do with what I have planned for the two of you. This turn will be the end for the two of you."

"Very unlikely you creep." Jaden snapped.

Lightly chuckling, Legato coolly said "You will see once I reveal my last trap, Meteorain! Thanks to this card, when my monsters attack, they will deal damage to your life points equal to the difference in their attack points and your monsters' defense points, or in layman's terms, Trample."

A single sweat drop streaked down Illidan's forehead at those words. The same happened with Jaden, each lightly growling in anticipation.

"This duel has been fun, but it must come to an end. But which of you shall I destroy first?" Legato questioned.

Glancing at Illidan, Legato coolly said "I could eliminate you completely, leaving that brat behind, but that would be too easy after all the trouble you've caused me.

Turning to stare at Jaden, he continued on, saying "You, brat, have caused me a great deal of irritation. Every step of the way, you've been pressuring me, and that is not something I wanted. Besides, I want to see the look of horror, sadness, anger, and helplessness on Illidan's face when your soul is taken."

Pointing a finger at the blue warrior wearing a white cape, Legato called out "Uria, eliminate that brat by destroying his Bubbleman. Attack with Hyper Blaze!"

Roaring loudly, the large red dragon took aim and shot out a stream of flames straight for the white caped warrior.

"Farewell you brat. Let this be a lesson to never stand in my way." Legato smugly said.

That said, the flames struck the white caped warrior, creating a dome of flames that surrounded Jaden and his remaining monsters.

"**JADEN!**" both Chazz and Alexis cried out, hoping to get some kind of response.

"_No…_" Marie whispered in her mind.

Smoke and flames still filled the air as the large red dragon finally relented in it's firing of it's stream. The intense blaze continued to burn around the area where Jaden once stood, forcing Illidan to hold his arm up to shield himself from the flames.

"So much for the brat." Legato stated.

Slowly, the flames and smoke died down. From within them, without warning, a chuckle could be heard that was distinctive.

Glaring at the devastation, Legato growled out "It can't be!"

The smoke and flames finally subsided, revealing Jaden with a big goofy smile on his face still standing, along with his two monsters.

"IMPOSSIBLE! YOU CAN'T STILL BE ALIVE!" Legato roared.

Lightly chuckling, Jaden calmly said "Not true, because you didn't know one thing about the monster you attacked."

Pointing at the white caped warrior, he added "When Bubbleman is equipped with Bubble Blaster and would lose a battle, the blaster is destroyed instead and I take zero Battle Damage."

Grinding his teeth, Legato screamed out "You will pay for this! Raviel, sharpen your claws on that pathetic hero with Shimmering Slash!"

Stepping forward, the large blue and purple creature pulled back it's right fist and began to build up energy within it's claws. The claws each began glowing a brilliant shade of light blue that was nearly blinding. In a single sweep, the creature slashed the white caped warrior, easily cutting him down.

"And don't forget, you take the difference in their points as direct damage!" Legato yelled.

Continuing forward, the large creature struck Jaden hard with two of his claws. The claws slashed through the clothing Jaden had on and left two large cuts on his chest, making Jaden double over in pain.

Sneering at his work, Legato barked out more orders. "Harmon, show his sparkplug what true power is with Cerulean Sky Fire!"

Roaring loudly, the large dull yellow creature lifted it's head and opened it's jaws, revealing blue bolts of energy swimming around in it's mouth. Lowering it's head to face the blue and gold warrior, the large creature released a stream of blue lightning at the warrior. The warrior was hit hard and screamed out in pain. Within a moment, his body was shattered while the remainder of the blast struck Jaden, causing him to fall to yelp in pain as the electricity sizzled on his body. The blast soon dissipated, leaving Jaden barely standing.

"And now for Hamon's special ability. You take an additional 1,000 points of damage!" Legato coldly said.

Lightning began flashing throughout the sky till finally, a series of bolts struck Jaden, making him scream out in agony. Moments after the bolts made contact, they vanished, leaving a smoldering and trembling Jaden that was barely standing. He staggered for a moment and almost fell but managed to keep his balance.

Sneering at Jaden's weakened form, Legato coldly said "Farwell brat. It was fun, that's for sure. Armityle the Chaos Phantom, end this duel with your Devastating Destruction!"

Letting out a mighty roar that shook the island, the large combination creature began gathering dark orange energy within it's jaws. Spreading it's wings out fully, the large creature released a stream of dark orange energy straight for Jaden.

Seeing the oncoming blast, Illidan closed his eyes. "_I can't let Jaden take the fall for me. Marie, I'm truly sorry for what I must do._"

Using his Shadow Powers, he quickly connected with Marie's mind. Seeing her mental image, he sadly smiled and said "_Marie, before I go, I wanted to tell you I love you, and will always be with you. My one and only regret is not getting to be there with you when our child is born. Please, be strong and carry on for yourself and our child. Goodbye._"

Hearing this, Marie began to say something, but he didn't wait for a reply. Breaking the link, he reopened his eyes that were full of a fierce determination. "Anubis, stop that blast now!" he called out.

Everyone gasped in shock as the powerful dog headed monster took up a blocking position on the field in front of the oncoming blast. Illidan instantly walked over in front of Jaden as well with his arms spread wide to seemingly shield him.

Shocked at the sight, Jaden cried out "NO, ILLIDAN, DON'T DO IT! DON'T SACRIFICE YOURSELF TO SAVE ME!"

Looking over his shoulder and sadly smiling, Illidan slowly said "It's alright. You did good Jaden. I'm proud of you."

Softly smiling, he added "Do me a favor, please. Tell Marie I am truly sorry, and that I love her and will always be with her. It's up to you to protect her now. Do your best for me."

Giving a small wink and a smile again, he warmly said "Goodbye."

At that moment, Illidan turned his eyes back to his creature. The monster finally gave out and the remainder of the blast flew straight into Illidan. Grunting loudly, he desperately held his ground, not allowing anything to bypass him. Finally, the pain was too much and he screamed out in agony.

After what seemed like an eternity, the blast cleared, leaving Illidan barely standing on the field. Seeing this, Legato burst out with a maniacal laugh and yelled "Fool, I warned you not to get in my way! Now you're done!"

With very stiff movements, Illidan mumbled "I have… one last thing to… do before I go. I… activate my… trap card, Final… Sarcophagus."

A white glow filled Illidan's Graveyard Slot for a moment before dying down.

"You'll… see soon… enough what… it does when… you lose." Illidan added in a deep raspy voice.

With great difficulty, he looked over his shoulder at Jaden and sadly smiled. "You… can do… it."

Upon saying his words, Illidan's eyes dulled and his body began to glow with a dark black aura. Instantly, he blanked out and began falling forward towards the ground face first. Seeing Illidan on his way down, Jaden rushed forward and managed to catch Illidan.

Holding Illidan's now soulless body in his arms, Jaden let tears begin streaming freely down his face. Gently, he turned him over so that his back was to the ground.

"WHY! WHY DID YOU DO IT ILLIDAN!? YOU HAD A BETTER CHANCE AT SURVIVING THAN ME!?" he sobbed out as he gently laid Illidan down onto the ground.

Staring at the pair, Alexis felt tears streaming down her own face as she held her hand over her mouth. "No, Illidan…" she muttered.

Chazz looked at the same scene and felt great sadness within himself welling up. "I can't believe it." he lowly mumbled as tears began to fall down his own cheeks.

Tied to the obelisk, Marie stared at her fallen husband with tears flowing down her cheeks. She desperately tried to free herself, but with what little strength she had left, she couldn't move. After a few more futile efforts of trying to free herself, she finally passed out from exhaustion, but not before mumbling "Illidan…"

Manically laughter cut through the air, spoiling the mood of the situation. Pointing at Jaden, Legato smugly said "You're pathetic! How Illidan could give his life to save a worthless brat like you I'll never know."

Turning serious, he added "Even though he was weaker than myself, he was stronger than I thought he could be. To wield the power of an Egyptian God Card with the strength of Anubis is no simple feat on it's own."

Smirking evilly, Legato manically said "Still, he was a fool to challenge me. Even the power of Anubis was not enough to allow him to defeat me. His sacrifice was in vain! You brat, you shall fall at my hands as well soon enough!"

Slowly looking up, Jaden glared at Legato with great anger and fury within his eyes. The golden pendant around his neck was now glowing with a brilliant golden glow that was approaching blinding. Standing up, Jaden dried his tears and gave a fierce look of anger at Legato.

"You will pay for taking Illidan! I'll make you pay for each person you've harmed Legato, I swear it!" Jaden boldly stated.

Sneering at Jaden, Legato coolly asked "How do you plan on doing that? You have no monsters, no spell or trap cards, and nothing in your hand. Illidan at least had Anubis, along with his worthless trap, and a few cards in his hand. He threw away the duel so you could live to lose to me."

"You're wrong! Illidan believed in me, and I won't let him down!" Jaden angrily spat back. "I am the descendant of both Illidan and Marie, meaning their blood courses through my veins. It's about time I showed you what I'm truly capable of!"

"Bold words, but can you back them up?" Legato taunted.

Glaring at Legato, Jaden coldly said "I'll take you down no matter what."

Darkly chuckling, Legato picked a card out of his hand and slid it into his Spell/Trap Slot. With a patient voice, he said "Very well then, I shall give you your chance. You sound exactly like Illidan, full of threats and promises, but unable to come through on them. I shall lay one card face down and move to my End Phase. Since I am, my Legendary Demons return to the removed from play pile, and Armityle's attack points return to zero (0/0)."

The three large creatures surrounding the large combination creature slowly rose into the air and each slid back into the dimensional rift. With all three gone again, the large combination creature softly growled, as if sending out a warning.

"Let us see what you can do. I end my turn." (Illidan 0, Jaden 3100; Legato 1750)


	77. Chapter 77: Sacrifice, Pt 2

**Hey there everybody. Well, another week has begun. This weekend wasn't too bad. I saw my grandfather Friday night, and he was doing well. We celebrated his birthday Friday, although it isn't till today, lol. My grandmother got him a cake and a razor (last thing he asked for before his stroke), and we had a good time. Of course, we're going to do it again tonight, lol. So, what happened… ah yes, my mate went to her job interview Friday, but she won't hear back from them on a decision for up to 2 months, which sucks, but eh, it's the State government, what do you expect, heh. Other than that, it's been a rather quiet weekend. My poor mate, she's trying to quit smoking, and is a bit touchy on stuff. It's alright. I love her very much, and I guess I can deal with her being moody till it's out of her system.**

**Writing wise, I'm making some good strides on **_**MtM**_**, but slowed on **_**Another**_**. I'll pick back up with it once I finish some stuff on **_**MtM**_** I suppose. It happens, lol. I still plan on posting **_**Another**_** starting this month, so hang on to any Inuyasha fans who want to read up on this story.**

**Heh, I suppose last time my chapter threw several of you for a loop. Yes, I actually had Illidan lose a duel, but more importantly, a Shadow Game. He's truly fallen in battle, leaving Jaden behind to continue the fight with Legato. Can Jaden manage to do the impossible against Legato, or will his fate and everyone else's be the same as Illidan?**

**Ok, time for the reviews!**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Yep, the true form of the Legendary Demons has come out, and with it Illidan's demise. Heh, nice nickname name for Armityle, hehe. Thanks for the review.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Heh, yeah, I guess I did kind of make it obvious that someone was going to lose this time around. Yep, Jaden's all alone from here on. Actually, about Armityle's effect, in the anime, it's different. You see, in the anime, you inflict 10k in damage when it attacks, but it's real effect is it gains 10k attack points during your turn, thus Anubis could in reality only weaken it. True, the U.S. won't get to the Supreme King episodes for a long time. Lol, I'm actually watching it on the Net from the UK. Glad you're looking forward to this chapter, cause it's really worth it, I suppose, lol. Thanks for the review.**

**DuelistBlake1852: Yep, he lost there Yami. (/Gives him a popsicle.\) Here, this will cheer you up! But yes, Illidan did sacrifice himself to save his friend and descendant. Even though he wished to remain with Marie, he couldn't allow family to die while he remained. Yes, it was a bit of an unexpected plot twist. Heh, I figured the cliffhanger would have everyone on edge, hehe. Thanks for the review.**

**Knives91: Yes, all hell breaks loose, lol. Heh, kill me, I think not! Half demons don't die, at least not this one, hehe. Thanks for the review.**

**Alright, that's about it for this go around. I'm sure I surprised a great deal of people by killing Illidan, but who knows, if Jaden wins, he could be back. Remember, Legato promised to release all the souls he took on his rampage of destruction, and Illidan is no exception I figure. Anyways, thank you all for your reviews. I enjoyed them very much, and I enjoyed your PM Raymond Barrett.**

**I just realized something Saturday. This story is setup to surpass **_**TWS**_** in reviews, and possibly to surpass **_**ToP**_** in number of words. That's a double feat that I wouldn't have guessed. Heh, I know in a lot of ways, **_**ToP**_** will always be the best in the reviews aspect due that it was so long, but that's cool. It happens, lol. I'm just so happy that everyone really likes this series. It all began as a day dream to keep me entertained at work, lol. Btw, for those who didn't know, **_**ToP**_** was what emerged from a previous story that I began. My previous one rather sucked and was really long and different. From it's ashes emerged the new **_**ToP**_**, which I liked much more. Anyways, I know, I'm just rambling now, but thought I'd share some history on it with you.**

**At any rate, I'm finished up for today. Look for another wonderful chapter to come out on Wednesday as always! Thanks everyone for your reviews. Till next time, enjoy!**

**Chapter 77**

Staring at his deck, Jaden prepared to draw, but stopped when he heard his Duel Spirit calling out to him. Closing his eyes, he heard it squeaking to him.

Softly smiling, he quietly said "_Don't worry Winged Kuriboh, I'll definitely win this one, no matter what happens! I promised Illidan I'd save Marie. I also promised to save Syrus and Hasselberry, along with all the other people who Legato hurt. I swore I'd do this, and I meant it too._"

Opening his eyes back up, Jaden smiled as he drew his card and looked it over. Without warning, there was a glow to his left. The glow instantly diminished and a trap card, the exact one Illidan had played before losing his soul appeared onto his field.

"What!? Why is that trap on your field!?" Legato growled out.

Staring at it with a frown, Jaden was about to respond when he saw his Duel Disk's Graveyard Slot glowing with a brilliant white light. After a moment of white light escaping, a white glowing card slid out of the slot and onto the middle monster card slot of Jaden's Duel Disk. Upon landing in the slot, multicolored electricity filled began flowing off of the Duel Disk. Unsure of what to do, Jaden held his arm out further away from his body, only to have the multicolored bolts begin striking him, making him scream out in pain.

Looking at Jaden in shock, Legato calmed and smirked. "So, he gave you Anubis. You cannot handle the power of Anubis though. Even Illidan had difficulty handling that card, so why do you think you can?"

Screaming out in pain while holding his arm up, Jaden squeezed his eyes shut, crying out in his mind "_I can do this! I have to! Illidan entrusted me with this monster, meaning he knew I can use it! I must do this, for the sake of all the people Legato hurt!_"

"Jaden…" Alexis mumbled while watching Jaden screaming in pain.

"Come on Slacker, you can do this." Chazz whispered.

Continuing to yell out in pain, Jaden struggled to gain control of the power that was zapping him. While struggling, he suddenly felt the presence of a three familiar Duel Spirits. Glancing around himself, he saw the three creatures that had faithfully served Illidan. There was the warrior in black ebony armor, along with the mage in black tight fitting armor, and finally the large black dragon with an orange mane.

"_Anubis, hear us! Our Master wished for this boy to use you to destroy Legato. We know that once, long ago, you defeated him and the Sacred Beasts. Now we implore you, please, allow this boy to use your strength to defeat them once again! If you don't, the world will fall into darkness!_" the mage cried out.

The aura of the powerful card seemed to shift lightly, and a raspy old voice said "_Very well, I shall help this boy defeat Legato. His plot to destroy Egypt long ago failed due that the pharaoh of that time begged for my help. I only do this due that I wish not to see this world end._"

Without warning, a sarcophagus on the field rose up from the ground. On the lid, the image of a man with a dog head appeared. Slowly, the lid slid off of the sarcophagus and the mighty dog headed creature rose up onto the field once again (2000/2000).

Once the monster has rose up, the multicolored lightning finally stopped flashing off of Jaden's Duel Disk, and his pain finally stopped. Panting heavily, Jaden stared at the strong creature and lightly chuckled.

Glaring at Jaden, Legato snarled "Just because you summoned that creature doesn't mean a thing."

Still chuckling, Jaden looked up and shook his head. "Not true. It proves one thing. I am destined to take you down! Illidan left me these two cards for a reason, because he believed in me and knew I could win this duel! Now it's time I end this game!"

"With what? So what if you have Anubis, it has little strength compared to my Armityle." Legato smugly remarked.

Smirking, Jaden quickly quipped back with "We'll see about that one. First of all, I'm activating the trap Illidan left me. Final Sarcophagus has more effects than just giving me Anubis. By giving up 500 of his attack and defense points, I can special summon from my deck, hand, Graveyard, or removed from play pile any monster, regardless of it's summoning requirements, to the field."

"WHAT!?" Legato bellowed.

"You heard me." Jaden shortly replied. "I give up 500 of Anubis's points (2000 – 500 1500/2000 – 500 1500), allowing me to first bring out this, my Elemental Hero Glow Neos (2500/2000)!"

A brilliant white light instantly emerged onto the field. Slowly forming within the light, a warrior in glowing white and grey armor appeared. He had a helmet that covered most of his face, except for his mouth and cheeks, and under his helmet, white tendrils of hair flowed out.

"Is that all you have?" Legato scoffed.

Smirking, Jaden replied "Not quite, for I activate Final Sarcophagus again! I'll give up another 500 of Anubis's points (1500 – 500 1000/1500 – 500 1000) to bring out Elemental Hero Dark Neos (2500/2000)!"

Instantly materializing onto the field, a new warrior that had black wings, black skin with a few blotches of white on his chest and legs made his entrance. The creature also had clawed hands, along with clawed feet.

"That's not it yet though, for I'm giving up another 500 points (1000 – 500 500/500)! Now welcome to the field Elemental Hero Air Neos (2500/2000)!"

Showing up onto the field immediately with a gust of wind was a red skinned warrior with large white wings on his back. His hands had brown like gloves that ran up to nearly his elbows, and on his feet were brown like boots. On the warrior's chest was the same symbolic circle that the other two warriors had.

"Pretty sweet, don't you think?" Jaden taunted. Not allowing Legato to respond, he continued on, saying "And now, one more monster, so I give up the last of Anubis's points (0/0) to bring out Elemental Hero Aqua Neos (2500/2000)!"

Appearing onto the field was a warrior in a blue and white slicked up body armor. The warrior appeared to have fins on his elbows, and a strange fin on his head.

Sneering at the four creatures, Legato arrogantly asked "What was the point of summoning those four weaklings? They're nothing compared to Armityle."

Lightly chuckling, Jaden remarked "I wouldn't be so sure of yourself over that. Sure, separately, they might not beat you, but together, that's a different story."

Nodding to the four warriors, who nodded back at him, Jaden called out "Guys, grant your power to Anubis! Give him the strength to end this duel!"

The four warriors took to the air simultaneously at once, each circling around the mighty dog headed creature.

"Anubis, take their strength and make it your own (2500 + 2500 + 2500 + 2500 + 0 10000/2000 + 2000 + 2000 + 2000 + 0 8000)!"

Instantly, the eyes of the powerful dog headed monster glowed bright white. The four warriors flying rapidly around the monster began glowing white as well while their energies slowly transferred. Nearly a minute passed by till finally, the four warriors vanished, but the dog headed creature remained as his aura flashed into a brilliant white light.

"Nice move Slacker." Chazz commented.

Smiling, Alexis clasped her hands together, saying "He's done it! I knew you could do it Jaden!"

Sneering at the dog headed creature, Legato coolly said "Your Egyptian God still doesn't scare me. I'm unimpressed."

"You should be worried, seeing how he'll help take you down. Before I attack though, I activate a spell known as O – Over Soul! Thanks to this spell, I can bring back an Elemental Hero from my Graveyard, so long as it's a Normal Type. Give a warm welcome to the original Elemental Hero Neos (2500/2000)!"

The powerful white warrior with a slicked back horn on his head and spikes coming out from his elbow joints instantly reappeared onto the field.

"Let's end this! Anubis, attack Armityle with Judgment of Death!"

Lifting it's right hand, the dog headed creature formed a sphere of pure white energy within his palm. After giving a glare at the combination creature, the mighty dog headed creature released the sphere at the combo creature.

Sneering at the oncoming blast, Legato coolly chuckled and smugly said "You are a fool to challenge Armityle's power. Now to demonstrate his true power. I reveal my first face down card, Chaos Form, but next I chain the spell Burial from a Different Dimension. With the help of this spell card, I can take three monsters from my removed from play pile and add them into my Graveyard. You know which three I'll choose, so it's no surprise it when I place my three Legendary Demons back into my Graveyard."

Holding his hand out to the small slot that ejected open, Legato took the three cards in it and placed them into the Graveyard Slot, which slowly pulled the three in, one by one.

Evilly looking back up at Jaden, Legato coolly remarked "Now that I've dumped those three into my Graveyard, I have all that I need. Thanks to Chaos Form, I can equip this trap to Armityle. Since you're now attacking, a random monster in my Graveyard is chosen to be equipped."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know all about that, but there is one problem with your strategy." Jaden calmly pointed out.

"Oh, and what is that?" Legato questioned.

Smirking, Jaden pointed at the dog headed creature and said "Anubis has 10,000 attack points, and only one monster in your Graveyard has that many attack points, which is Uria. You may get lucky and grab him, but you might not. So, let's see if you got the luck to do it or not!"

"It isn't luck. It's pure fate that you will fall at my hands. Now watch, as I decimate your pathetic Egyptian God!" Legato remarked.

Holding his Duel Disk out, Legato smirked evilly while waiting for a card to appear from his Graveyard. After a moment, the Graveyard Slot glowed and a card slid out. Instantly, a translucent form of the card appeared onto the field, revealing it to have a large red snake like dragon's image on it.

"I told you! Watch now as Uria, Lord of Searing Flames (10000/10000) becomes Armityle's weapon to destroy your pathetic creature! Destroy Anubis now my ancient Egyptian God! Exact your revenge from being destroyed!" Legato commanded.

Roaring loudly, the large combination creature opened it's jaws and reared it's head backwards. Drawing power into it's jaws, the creature lowered it's head and spread it's wings fully open. Orange energy came streaming out of the creature's mouth and struck the sphere, causing a large explosion of power.

With insanity in his voice, Legato screamed "Watch now as your Egyptian God falls into darkness forever!"

"No way is that happening, because I activate Anubis's special ability known as Point to Point. Thanks to this, I can transfer some of my life points to Anubis's attack and defense points. I give up 100 of my life points so Anubis can kick your monster's butt (10000 + 100 10100/10000 + 100 10100)!" Jaden called out.

Lightly glowing white, the powerful dog headed creature sent out a second sphere of white energy from his left hand, merging into the struggling sphere that was already weakening. With the two merging, the stream of orange energy was cut through like a knife through hot butter and sailed straight back into the combination creature. Upon impact, the creature roared out in pain and stepped backwards.

"Wait, why wasn't Armityle destroyed?" Jaden asked.

Darkly chuckling, Legato pointed at his combination creature and replied "There is good reasoning. Armityle has the special ability to survive any battle. That means you can't destroy him."

Lightly growling in frustration, Jaden lightly chuckled, remarking "That maybe the case, but don't forget, you still take Battle Damage."

Shrugging lightly as he was struck by a small flicker of white energy, Legato coolly replied "No matter. Not like it will affect the outcome of this duel."

"We'll see about that, because it's time to end this duel. Neos, go attack Armityle now with Cosmic Crush!" Jaden confidently called out.

Watching the white warrior rushing towards his creature, Legato burst out into a maniacal laughter, exclaiming "FOOL! HAVEN'T YOU REALIZED YOU WILL FAIL AT DEFEATING ME!"

"I have realized that defeating you will be difficult." Jaden admitted calmly. Smiling, he added "But I also realize that your strategy is flawed."

Sneering, Legato arrogantly asked "How so? Armityle shall claim one of my Legendary Demon's power this turn as his own, meaning you will lose."

Smirking, Jaden shook his head and calmly said "Not quite. Remember, Chaos Form picks a random Effect monster from your Graveyard, and last I checked, you had nine total. Three of them have zero attack points, and the other three only have 1400. Sure, if one of the 1400 ones are picked, you'll survive, but if one of the zero ones are picked, well, it's game over."

"And you forget, if I get a Legendary Demon, you shall lose!" Legato added.

Shaking his head, Jaden replied "Not really. Only if Uria is picked would I lose, and that's a one out of nine shot. Do you think it'll happen? It could, but it's unlikely to. I may not pay much attention in class to teachers, but something about probability and statistics did sink in from what Professor Marie taught me. So, let's find out Legato just how lucky you are!"

Lightly growling, Legato coolly said "I know my monster will prevail."

Holding his Duel Disk out, Legato watched as his Graveyard began to glow. After a few moments, a monster card image appeared on the field that had the image of a black sphere on it.

"NOO!!!" Legato roared.

Pointing at the combination creature, Jaden remarked "Looks like the random monster picked was Chaos Phantom (0/0), which had zero attack points! This one is for all those that you've hurt! Neos, send him out of this world with Cosmic Crush!"

Continuing to fly through the air, the white warrior pulled back his fist. It began to lightly glow white as he neared the combination creature. With all his might, he thrust it into the head of the creature, smashing through it with a bit of difficulty. Still flying through the air, he continued on and struck Legato hard with his fist as well, making Legato go flying through the air. He hit the ground soon enough with a rough landing.

"And that's game!" Jaden declared while pointing at Legato with his trademark two fingers.

All of the creatures on the field at that declaration instantly vanished. The small box that had been keeping score also opened, revealing it's precious contents.

Getting up, Legato yelled "HOW COULD A MERE CHILD DEFEAT ME!!!"

"You set yourself up for a defeat the day you harmed the first person in your path. Now release all the souls you sent to the Shadow Realm!" Jaden commanded.

Sneering, Legato shook his head and arrogantly said "If I must fall into the darkness, then I shall go without paying up! Your precious friends are all gone now and forever with me!"

With evil laughter, Legato slowly began to fade away while dark creatures ate through his body, leaving only his laughter behind. He soon vanished altogether, allowing the darkness surrounding the field to vanish.

Upon Legato disappearing, the bonds holding Marie and Pharaoh were released, dropping both none to gently to the ground.

Clenching his fists till they were white, Jaden growled out "You coward!"

Looking over at Marie, Jaden's anger quelled while worry began to fill him. Glancing over at the box that had opened, he rushed to it and grabbed the vial containing her antidote. Running to Marie, he quickly placed her head in his lap while checking her vitals. Finding she was alive, he tried to calm himself, but found he couldn't.

"Hang in there Marie, I have the antidote right here!" he cried out.

Tilting her head back a bit, he opened her mouth gently. Pulling the cork from the vial, Jaden gently poured the contents into her mouth. Once it was fully empty, he impatiently waited for a sign that it was working.

After nearly a minute, the antidote seemed to begin to take affect. Marie lightly groaned and her eyes fluttered open, revealing unclear chocolate orbs. Focusing on the face looking down at her, she moaned lightly once more.

"Marie, are you alright?" Jaden asked with a touch of worry.

For a moment, she remained quiet, but finally she weakly replied "I think so."

With difficulty, she sat up and glanced around. "What happened?"

"I managed to defeat Legato. It's over." Jaden was quick to remark.

"And Illidan?" Marie timidly asked.

Looking at the ground, Jaden stayed quiet for a moment. Seeing she was getting no response, Marie turned towards Jaden, asking again with a touch more emotion "What about Illidan?"

"He… he didn't make it." Jaden muttered with downcast eyes. He lowered his head till finally his bangs covered his eyes.

Tears instantly began running down Marie's cheeks upon Jaden's declaration. "No…" she whispered.

Slowly standing up with some difficulty, she made her way towards the former battleground. There, she found Illidan's prone body laying very still on the ground.

Falling to her knees beside of his body, Marie laid her head on Illidan's chest and grabbed a fist full of his jacket. In a loud sobbing voice, she cried out "Illidan, why, why did you have to leave me here all alone!? I need you, you know that! I can't live without you! Please, just open your eyes! I promise to always love you! Just open your eyes!"

Both Chazz and Alexis each bowed their heads and looked away, unable to any longer watch Marie in the state she was in. Each felt the pain in their hearts of losing a friend, but to see Marie the way she was broke their hearts completely.

Listening to Marie's wailing, Jaden looked up with tears of sadness in his own eyes. Noting that the three Egyptian God Cards were still in the box that had been locked, previously, he stood up. Without hesitation, he moved to the box and picked up the three cards, then walked over to where Legato had been. There, he found the three Sacred Beast Cards, along with their fusion card.

Taking Anubis out of his own deck, Jaden stared at the eight cards and then back at Marie. Squeezing out a few more tears, he closed his eyes and grabbed hold of his Shadow Pendant with his one hand while holding the eight cards with the other. Slowly, he began concentrating his energy into his Shadow Charm till he felt all of it's power surging to the surface. Certain it was at it's maximum, he began calling out in his mind to the spirits of the eight cards in his hand.

It didn't take long for the monsters to respond, with all eight appearing within his mind. Beside of his spirit self, his own Duel Spirit, Winged Kuriboh, appeared.

Staring at the mighty eight creatures, Jaden humbly said "_Mighty Egyptian Gods and Sacred Beasts, I beg of you to hear my plea._"

The eight all made some sort of noise, as if to respond with an 'Okay.' Nodding, Jaden fell onto his hands and knees, kneeling deeply till his face was almost touching the ground.

In a humbled voice, he said "_I beg of you all, please return the souls of the ones Legato sent to the Shadow Realm. He pledged to, but in the end, broke his word. For that, I know, he was punished by being sent to the Shadow Realm, but the people who were taken are forever lost due to him. I beg of you, please, show mercy and release those souls._"

"_Why should we go against our Master's wishes!_" Uria cried out with a mighty roar.

Still not rising, Jaden added "_Please, your master made a promise to release them upon his loss. He has gone against his word, thus leaving those souls in the Shadows forever. His word was supposed to be that of an honorable man. Due to that, I ask of you all, honor Legato's words and release the souls._"

The four Egyptian Gods seemed to all nod in agreement, but the three Sacred Beasts shook their heads. "_We will not go against the wishes of our Master!_" the three declared.

"_Enough!_" the large combination creature of the group said. All eyes turned to him as he said "_Long ago, I believed that honor was highest of all things to me. But I lost that when Legato resurrected me and used me for his own desires. I see now that I have a chance to redeem myself, and I will!_"

Nodding, the three Egyptian Gods, Obelisk, Slifer, and Ra, growled out in agreement. Anubis though, called out "_You understand though mortal, we cannot do this without something in return. The Shadows will have to feed on something in their place._"

Without hesitation, Jaden remarked "_I will take their place._"

"_Are you sure mortal? There will be no way to return you if you do this._" Anubis asked.

Again, with no hesitation, Jaden replied "_I will do it. If it will save all of my friends and family, then so be it. My life is nothing compared to the greater good of the others._"

The five Egyptian Gods each simply nodded. Anubis immediately cast a glare at the Sacred Beasts, making the three lightly shutter and nod too.

"_So let it be known that this boy has made the choice. Shadows, release the souls of the ones that Legato stole now! In exchange, this boy has offered his soul in their place!_" Anubis cried out.

Almost instantly, a dark aura began surrounding Jaden's body. Glancing at him, both Chazz and Alexis to cried out "JADEN!"

Rushing towards him, Alexis attempted to grab hold of him with a hug, only instead she went straight through him, as if he was not there. "No, Jaden, what's happening to you!?" she asked with complete worry in her voice.

Turning to look at her with a sad smile, Jaden replied "I set things right for everyone. Goodbye Alexis."

"JADEN, NO, DON'T GO!" she screamed out. Rushing forward, she tried once again to grab hold of him only to find air.

His image shimmered a bit before finally vanishing.


	78. Chapter 78: Dream, Pt 1

**Hey everyone! This week hasn't been so bad thus far. Monday, I saw my grandfather, who was doing rather well. He asked for a spaghetti dinner from a local restaurant for his birthday dinner, which my grandmother got for him. He originally took 3 bites and said he was done, lol, but my grandmother coaxed him to eat half. Not long after that, he asked where his dinner was. Granny told him she had already fed him, but he said he was still hungry. So, she got half of what was left and brought it in. He ate that, and was still hungry, so she warmed up the rest. He ate all but a few bites of a rather large dinner, plus two pieces of bread. To say the least, me and Granny were a bit surprised. After that, not much else happened and I went home.**

**Story wise, eh, with work, I'm not doing much on it, lol. I've been busy the last day or so, so no time to work on it. I'm nearly done with a section of **_**MtM**_**, but I keep putting off finishing for some reason… Anyways, once I finish that, I'll probably work on **_**Another**_** once again. I hope to finish enough of it by the end of the month so I can begin posting it.**

**In the last chapter, Jaden finished off Legato, only to have Legato neglect to fulfill his end of his agreement in freeing the people he sent to the Shadow Realm. Marie was cured of her poison, but had her heart broken by finding Illidan was now gone for good. Seeing this, Jaden made a decision to make the ultimate sacrifice, offering himself in the place of all the people Legato had made suffer. Will his sacrifice truly save all that were taken, or will it be hollow?**

**Wow, there are so many reviews this time around. Alright, might as well get to work.**

**Raymond Barrett: Thanks. I had 6 monsters? No, I don't think so. If you're talking about when I had those 4 forms of Neos out, then no, it wasn't 6 monsters. See, I had Jaden sacrifice all 4 forms of Neos to Anubis, thus clearing the field back down to Anubis alone when Jaden summoned the original Neos. Hope that cleared things up. Thanks for the review!**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: Yes Jaden! Eh, why not have Jaden eaten by the Shadows, hehe. Glad you liked the climax to the duel. Yeah, Legato wormed his way out of his own deal, but oh well. Yep, I did give Anubis a bit of a personality in this story instead of the other two stories thus far. He was quite active in **_**TWS**_**, but still, not overly active. Nah, Legato is gone for good. He's paid for his crimes, so it's over for him. Thanks for the review!**

**Knives91: Yep, he's whooped, lol. Jaden is gone, that is true. Thanks for the review.**

**DuelistBlake1852: LOL! Poor Yami, are you sure another popsicle won't help? Maybe Illidan can get Jaden out of this jam, but who knows (other than me, lol). Another Shadow Game, already!? That wouldn't be fun, lol. Thanks for the compliment, and the review!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Nope, no confrontation with Legato after his defeat, unfortunately, lol. Eh, no, he's not reviving anything like Dartz was, well, other than fuel the Sacred Beasts with the Egyptian Gods' power. You say Jaden can't die, well guess what, he did, lol. Yeah, I saw they made Yubel female. Joy… Thanks for the review!**

**Nathan: Thanks. Yep, Illidan lost, then Jaden sacrificed himself for everyone else. Thanks for the reviews.**

**x-knight20: Thank you. Yep, Jaden sacrificed himself to save everyone. How noble… Thanks for the review.**

**Wow, lots of reviews to write up! Lol, not that I mind, but it took a while, hehe. Thank you everyone for your reviews, and for mangafan for adding **_**ToP**_** as a favorite. I'm very happy for all the views from everyone. They're very helpful to me.**

**Anyways, I need to be running. Lots of work to do yet. Thanks for the reviews guys, and I hope you enjoy this chapter! Later!**

**Chapter 78**

At the infirmary, there were groans and moans all over the room where the people who had been attacked lay. Hearing them, the nurse rushed in and gasped in shock.

"DOCTOR, COME QUICKLY!" she screamed out the door.

Rushing in, the doctor looked around in astonishment with a gasp. "It's not possible. They're all waking up at the same time…"

Checking on a few, the doctor found that each was coming to. The first to come to was Syrus, who slowly sat up. Glancing around, he asked "Where am I?"

While glancing around, he caught a glimpse of what he thought was his brother. Being careful upon getting up, Syrus slowly walked over to the bed where he saw the person. Getting there, he glanced at the person, but hardly recognized his brother.

"Why are you wearing this stuff? What happened Zane?" he mumbled softly to himself mostly.

As if on queue, Zane began to wake up. Opening his teal eyes, he saw Syrus standing over him. "Syrus?" he questioned softly.

"Yeah big brother, it's me."

With a bit of effort, Zane sat up and instantly hugged his brother, shocking Syrus.

"Zane?" Syrus worriedly asked.

"You're back." Zane lowly murmured. Releasing his embrace, he slowly slid off of the bed and stood up. Looking around, he pondered on what had happened.

"_I lost my duel to Illidan, so my soul was taken to the Shadow Realm. Still, what is this feeling? It's like I'm not myself still._"

A dark chuckling entered his mind suddenly, making Zane glance around. In his mind, a figure in the shadows appeared. "_You are too weak._"

"_Who are you!?_" Zane demanded.

That said, the figure came into the light. Zane could only gasp in shock to see that this person was Zell. Without warning, Zell's body morphed into a copy of Zane's, but this Zane had an evil look in his eye and an evil smirk to match.

"_You're… you're Zell!_" Zane exclaimed in complete shock.

Darkly chuckling, the evil Zane nodded and replied "_That's right weakling, I am! You do not deserve to exist anymore! This body is now mine, so be gone from my mind now!_"

Chains of Shadow Magic instantly materialized and wrapped around Zane's arms, legs, and around his neck. They began pulling with great force at him into the darkness of his mind, all the while he was screaming to for them to let go.

Seeing Zane's blank expression, Syrus lightly shook Zane, asking frantically "Big brother, are you alright!?"

Coming out of the expression, Zane smirked evilly and said "Never better."

"What happened?" Syrus questioned.

Without another word, Zane began to walk away without answering Syrus's question. Somewhat shocked at this, Syrus called out "Wait, where are you going!?"

"I'm leaving this dump. It doesn't suit me anymore." Zane coldly responded.

Shocked, Syrus quickly ran ahead of Zane and blocked his path. "What's wrong with you!? Did something happen!?"

In a flash of unseen movement, Zane threw Syrus into the nearby wall. "Out of my way you runt. I have duels to win." Zane gruffly said.

Slowly standing up, Syrus watched in horror as his brother left. "Big brother, what happened to you?" he mumbled with tears flowing down his cheeks.

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Finding himself back in his body, Illidan lightly groaned. Listening intently, he heard someone sobbing and felt weight on his chest, and immediately knew who it was.

Carefully moving his hand, he placed it on Marie's back, whispering lowly "Marie."

Looking up with tears still flowing down her face, Marie saw Illidan's eyes had opened. "ILLIDAN!" she cried out and hugged him tightly.

Hearing that word, both Chazz and Alexis glanced over at where Marie sat on her knees and both smiled sadly.

"He's alive." Chazz murmured.

"Thank goodness." Alexis added, but frowned as tears slipped down her cheeks. "_Jaden, is this what you did? You gave your life to save everyone else?_"

Gently patting Marie's back, Illidan gently said "It's alright."

"You were gone when I came to, and I thought I had lost you forever! Please, don't ever leave me again!" she wailed, still hugging him tightly.

Softly chuckling, Illidan replied "I won't, I promise."

After a few more moments, Marie finally released Illidan, who sat up and finally got up off of the ground. Looking to Chazz, he asked "What happened?"

"When you lost, Jaden carried on. During his turn, that trap you used appeared on his field, along with your Egyptian God Card. He used it to turn the tables on Legato and ended it." Chazz summed up.

Nodding, Illidan lightly smiled and said "Good, I knew Jaden could do it."

Glancing around, he frowned and asked "Where is Jaden anyways?"

Turning his eyes downwards, Chazz didn't answer. Through her sobs, Alexis wailed out "He's… he's gone! When the duel ended, Legato refused to return the souls that he had taken. After giving Marie the antidote, he gathered up the Egyptian God Cards and Sacred Beast Cards. A few minutes later, he began vanishing. Before he vanished, he said he had set things right and then said goodbye."

Wailing more profusely, Alexis fell to her knees and cried out "He sacrificed his own life to save everyone else!"

Shocked, Illidan mumbled "No… Jaden, why? Did you value your friends' lives more than your own?"

Falling to his own knees, hot tears slid down his cheeks. "Jaden, why!"

Embracing Illidan from behind, Marie calmly said "Because, he wanted you to be happy and to live on with me."

"It's not fair for him though!" Illidan cried out.

"I know love, but we both know life isn't fair. Jaden's sacrifice has given us all something. We should not be sad over it, for he wouldn't want us to be tormented by it." Marie gently said in a comforting voice.

"I know, but it's just not fair. He had his whole life ahead of him!" Illidan bitterly said.

Smashing his fist into the ground, Illidan muttered "Forgive me Jaden. I'm so sorry you had to do this."

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In the darkness of the Shadow Realm, Jaden was slowly being devoured by the Shadow Creatures. They had surrounded him and began crawling up his legs. Before they could crawl any further up, a golden light filled the area.

The light came closer and took the form of a young man. Looking him over, Jaden saw he had blonde bangs, mostly black spiky hair with a bit of pink on the edge of it. His eyes were a hardened violet, but seemed to hold a bit of softness in them. His skin was tan and he wore ancient Egyptian clothing. Just his presence alone seemed commanding to Jaden.

"In the name of the Pharaoh, I order you to release that boy." the young man commanded.

The Shadow Creatures immediately skittered off of Jaden and out of the presence of the man. Walking straight to Jaden, the young man smiled.

"You must be Jaden Yuki." the young man kindly said.

Nodding, Jaden replied "Yes, that's me. Do I know you?"

Lightly chuckling, the young man shook his head, saying "No, you don't. But I'm sure you've heard of me through my brother and sister-in-laws."

Thinking for a moment, Jaden finally asked "Uh, who are they?"

"You are exactly like Illidan sometimes." the young man remarked.

"Wait, you know Illidan!?"

Nodding, the young man said "He was my brother-in-law in ancient times, and I took up that same relation to him when he and Marie were married once more ten years ago."

"You're… you're the pharaoh they told me about! What was it, Yumi, Yomi, no, it's Yami!" Jaden exclaimed.

Chuckling, Yami nodded and replied "That's right. Why are you here?"

Excitement dying down, Jaden looked at the ground. "I sacrificed myself to save all the souls that Legato took. I couldn't bear the thought of Marie trying to go through life without Illidan."

"I see. Yes, she would have no doubt never recovered from that loss." Yami commented. Smiling once more, he added "That was very noble of you."

Rubbing the back of his head, Jaden smiled and shyly said "Thanks."

"It takes real courage to be willing to sacrifice one's self for the ones you love. You are most definitely the descendant of Illidan and Marie."

"Wow, you knew that?" Jaden asked in a bit of shock.

"Yes, I knew that you were their descendant. You have the same looks as one of their children, not to mention you have the same courage and inner strength Illidan seemed to always have."

Smiling, Jaden remarked "Thanks. But why are you here?"

"To free you, for I will not allow you to die here. It is not yet your time to." Yami replied.

"But I made a deal…"

Nodding, Yami cut in and interjected "True, you did, but I'm altering the deal. You will not lose your soul to the Shadows."

"Ok…" Jaden began. "But what happens to the people Legato took!?"

"They're fine. They've been freed already." Yami responded calmly.

Letting out a sigh of relief, Jaden replied "Thank goodness."

"Come, I am taking you somewhere first before I return you to your friends." Yami said while offering a hand.

Smiling, Jaden accepted it. The golden light surrounding Yami immediately spread to Jaden, surrounding his own body.

Closing his eyes, Yami began to seemingly concentrate. After a few moments, he reopened them and smiled. "There he is."

Before Jaden could ask what Yami meant, the pair vanished from the darkness. The pair instantly rematerialized on a beach with another person standing there and seemingly waiting.

Upon rematerializing, the other person walked up to Yami, smiling great big. "Yami, you found him!" he exclaimed.

"Yes, I did. It didn't take too long." Yami replied.

Staring at the new stranger, Jaden instantly recognized him. "You're Yugi Moto!" he exclaimed.

Smiling, Yugi nodded back. "Yes, I am. And you're Jaden Yuki, right?"

"Yeah, I am!" Jaden happily replied. "Oh yeah, back this past Christmas, I met your wife and daughter, Tea and Yoshi."

Slightly shocked, Yugi instantly regained his composure and quietly asked "How were they?"

"Yoshi was a lot of fun to play with, but Tea seemed pretty sad. She seemed a little better after her and Illidan talked. Still, she seemed a bit sad."

Frowning, Yugi lightly sighed. Placing a hand on Yugi's shoulder, Yami warmly smiled and said "You should go see them more often. After all, Bakura is out helping you, so the work wouldn't go undone."

Nodding sadly, Yugi muttered "I know. I just wish this was all over."

"I know, but it will be one day. Just remain patient." Yami responded.

"Uh, what are you guys talking about?" Jaden asked.

Smiling, Yami remarked quickly "Nothing to worry about. Anyways, Yugi, I brought Jaden here to reward him for his recent activities."

"Reward? With what?" Jaden asked with curiosity peeking through his eyes.

"You have a dream, right Jaden?" Yami asked in return.

Thinking for a moment, Jaden nodded and said "Yeah, I have dreams." 

"There is one in specific I'm thinking of. You wish to become the King of Games."

Jaden simply nodded in response, prompting Yami to continue on. "Well then, how about a duel against the previous King of Games to help you along?"

Grinning great big, Jaden's eyes lit up as he exclaimed "SERIOUSLY!?"

Looking to Yugi, who only smiled, Yami nodded in reply. "That is if Yugi agrees to it."

"Sure, why not. It sounds like fun." Yugi remarked.

"Then it's agreed. The two of you shall duel." Yami calmly said.

"Now?" Jaden asked with excitement leaking out of his eyes.

Lightly chuckling, Yugi nodded. "Yes, now is good."

"SWEET!" Jaden yelled out.

Both Yugi and Yami chuckled at this. Regaining his composure, Yami smiled once more and said "I wish I could stay, but unfortunately, I must return to the realm of the Pharaoh. Jaden, I must ask one thing of you before I go."

Turning serious, Jaden nodded. Seeing it, Yami continued on. "I must ask you to allow me to take the Sacred Beast and Egyptian God Cards with me. I wish to lock them away so no one can ever tamper with them again."

Nodding, Jaden replied "Sure, that's not a problem. They should be locked away where no one can ever use them again."

Digging the eight cards out of his pocket, Jaden handed them to Yami, who examined the eight. "Hard to believe eight little cards have caused so much trouble." he commented.

Looking back up at the pair, he warmly said "Thank you. Good luck with the duel."

"Thanks, and take care of those cards!" Jaden replied back.

"Don't worry, I will." Yami remarked.

Turning to Yugi, Yami gave the young man a warm smile and said "Take some time off to go see Tea and Yoshi. I'm sure they miss you dearly."

"I will Yami." Yugi quietly replied.

"Good. For now, farewell. Hopefully one day, I shall see both of you again." Yami said as he slowly began to vanish into nothingness.

Both Jaden and Yugi smiled and waved till Yami was finally gone. Once gone, Yugi turned to Jaden, asking "Well, shall we begin?"

Smiling great big, Jaden exclaimed "Sure!"

Each took their decks out and handed them to one another and shuffled. Once finished, the pair placed their decks within their Duel Disks. Turning and around and walking away from one another till there was enough room between the two of them, the pair stopped and turned to face one another.

Holding out their arms, each activated their Duel Disks. Yugi's older model formed it's blade like structure and lit up, while Jaden's just pushed out and fired it's slot to form it's blade.

Simultaneously, the pair drew their first five cards and called out "Let's duel!"

Drawing his sixth card, Yugi smiled, saying "I'll start things off by playing the spell Polymerization, allowing me to fuse these two, my Berfomet (1400/1800) and Gazelle the King of Mythical Beasts (1500/1200) to form Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast (2100/1800)!"

A large creature with mostly orange fur, with some brown, four arms, a pair of white wings on his back, a set of golden horns, and sharp clawed hands of feet first appeared, followed next by a brown lion like creature with a black mane, a horn on his forehead, glowing yellow eyes, and sharp clawed hands and feet.

The two soon began swirling together, and from the swirling came a two headed lion like creature with large white wings on four legs. It had mostly golden fur with a brown mane and a few other patches of brown fur elsewhere. One head of the creature had a single horn on it's forehead while the other head had a pair of horns. It's tail on the end appeared to have a mouth of it's own with a few sharp teeth. Each head let out a mighty roar, showing it's dominance.

"I believe that should do it for me." (Yugi 8000, Jaden 8000)

Smiling as he drew his sixth card, Jaden excitedly said "Sweet opening move Yugi. I see now I'm going to need to get my game on if I'm going to beat you! I'll kick things off by summoning my Elemental Hero Bubbleman (800/1200)!"

Rising up onto the field in a swirl of bubbles was a warrior in mostly light blue spandex with some darker blue, a large white cape, a couple of tanks on his back, and a water hose like blaster attached to his right hand. His mask mostly covered all but his mouth and cheeks. Landing on the field, the warrior crossed his arms, seemingly daring the lion creature to attack it.

"When Bubbleman is summoned on my field and he's all alone, I can automatically draw two additional cards."

Picking up two cards, Jaden remarked "Let's see what else I have in stored for you."

Examining the cards for a moment, he smiled. "I activate the spell Bubble Shuffle, which switches both Bubbleman and Chimera to defense mode."

Both the white caped warrior and the winged beast took up defensive stances with card images forming underneath of them each.

"Next, I get to sacrifice Bubbleman, and I'm trading him in for Elemental Hero Bladedge (2600/1800)!"

Immediately, the white caped warrior vanished from the field, only to be replaced by a large golden warrior with rippling biceps and legs, a set of sharp blades jutting out from his elbows, and a pair of blade like short wings on his back.

"Alright Bladedge, let's cut to the chase! Attack Chimera with Slice and Dice Attack!"

Letting out a small moan, the warrior leapt straight up into the air, seemingly waiting for something.

"Oh yeah, one other thing I should explain. When Bladedge attacks a monster in defense, the difference in his attack points and your monster's defense points are subtracted from your life points."

Lightly gasping, Yugi mumbled "Trample…"

"Yep, that's right. Bladedge, go get'em!" Jaden declared.

Rushing forward from his aerial position, the golden warrior vanished within an instant. A moment later, the large two headed creature began to split in eight ways before a thunderous explosion followed. The warrior soon reappeared in front of Yugi and slashed him hard across the chest, making Yugi slide backwards.

Grasping his chest, Yugi lightly smirked and said "Well executed Jaden, but you'll need more than that to beat me. You just triggered Chimera's special effect when you destroyed him. I can now bring back one of the two monsters I used to form Chimera, so I choose Berfomet (1400/1800) in defense!"

Upon Yugi's declaration, his Duel Disk's Graveyard Slot began glowing softly as a card came slowly out. Grabbing it up, Yugi slapped it to his Duel Disk horizontally. Instantly, the large orange creature with some brown and four arms appeared with his arms crossed and in a kneeling stance.

Smiling at this, Jaden remarked "Nice effect. I'll throw down this face down and chill out for now." (Yugi 7200, Jaden 8000)

Drawing his next card, Yugi examined it before smirking. Flipping the card over to show Jaden, he called out "I play this, my spell Five-Star Twilight! I can only activate this card by first sacrificing a five star monster, which Berfomet is. Now, meet my new monsters!"

Raining down from the sky came five little stars. Each struck the field, causing a small puff of smoke to appear. From the smoke, five different colored little fur ball creatures with small green arms and feet with purple toenails, with each having purple eyes materialized. There was a brown, white, blue, pink, and yellow fur ball with each letting out a "Kree" noise.

"Oh wow, I didn't know Kuriboh had so many cousins." Jaden mused.

Chuckling, Yugi replied "There are many, and they each are strong. It's time I showed you how strong my Kuriboh Brothers (300/200) (x 5) are. I discard my Spellbinding Circle trap in order to activate the special ability of my Kuriboh's. Now, take up the form of Kuriball!"

The five fur ball creature instantly lined up with the white one being last in line. Slowly, it began eating each of the four till nothing was left but a large white fur ball. Rushing forward, the large fur ball plowed into the golden warrior. On impact, the warrior slumped over and the five fur balls reappeared on Yugi's field.

"Hey, what did you do to Bladedge?" Jaden asked with a touch of concern.

Lightly chuckling, Yugi pointed at the slumped over warrior, saying "When Kuriball strikes a monster, he reduces that monster's points by half (2600 / 2 1300/1800). Too bad for your Bladedge. Moving on, I activate my Kuriboh Brothers next special ability. Form up to create Kuribabylon (1500/1000)!"

The five fur balls each leapt into the air in a star formation and a puff of smoke appeared. Out of the smoke stood a large bluish-grey looking fur ball with a horn and a bit of a fierce face.

Shocked, Jaden asked "Huh, where did he come from?"

"He was formed by my five Kuriboh Brothers. Allow me to explain. When my five Kuribohs merge together to form Kuribabylon, his stats are determined by adding the five brothers' attack and defense points together. Since each had 300 attack points and 200 defense, the total was 1500 and 1000." Yugi explained.

"Oh… I see." Jaden flatly replied.

Smirking lightly, Yugi pointed at the weakened golden warrior, calling out "Kuribabylon, attack with Horn Strike!"

Letting out a small growl, the large bluish-grey creature launched itself forward and pierced the golden warrior with it's horn. The warrior instantly cried out in pain before exploding into millions of pieces.

Covering his face to block the exploding debris, Jaden said "You may have taken down Bladedge, but you triggered my trap as well! Go Hero Signal!"

The face down card in front of Jaden instantly rose up, revealing it's image. A flash of light then filled the sky with a strange looking H shaped light.

"When Hero Signal is activated, I can automatically special summon one Elemental Hero from my hand or Deck to the field, so long as it's level four or lower. My pick is this one from my deck, Elemental Hero Clayman (800/2000) in defense!"

Materializing onto the field was a large round grey and black like creature with golden trim on his feet and a red dome head. His body was built thickly. He took a one knee position and crossed his arms, showing his impressive defensive strength.

Smiling, Yugi said "Not bad Jaden, but you'll need more than defense to beat me. To end my turn, I shall transform Kuribabylon back into the five Kuriboh Brothers."

A puff of smoke appeared and instantly, the larger fur ball creature vanished and the five smaller ones reappeared. (Yugi 7200, Jaden 7800)

Grinning great big, Jaden drew his next card, exclaiming "This duel is so awesome so far!"

Lightly chuckling, Yugi remarked "True, this duel has been fun so far. Come, show me what else you have Jaden."

Smirking, Jaden pulled a card from his hand and slapped it to his Duel Disk. "You want to see more, well check this out. Elemental Hero Sparkman (1600/1400), come on down!"

Appearing onto the field was a blue and gold warrior with electricity striking his body. He wore a full face mask, and had a strange set of golden like metal wings on his back.

"Next, I play the equip spell Mud Max and use it on Clayman, raising his points by 300 (800 + 300 1100/2000)!"

Flying out of the spell card image was a large go-kart. Leaping into the air, the large grey round warrior came crashing down into the seat of the cart and revved up the motor.

"Alright, I switch Clayman into attack mode, and now Sparkman, take down one of those Kuriboh's with Static Shockwave!"

Pointing his right arm at the brown fur ball, the blue and gold warrior released a stream of electricity out of his palm at the creature.

Slightly smirking, Yugi called out "My Kuribohs aren't that easy to take down. I activate Star Defense!"

Each of the five fur balls let out a small "Kree" and moved into a star formation. Holding their hands together, a large golden star appeared in front of the five, which absorbed the oncoming electrical blast.

"Hey, what happened!?" Jaden asked in a bit of shock.

Chuckling, Yugi replied "My five Kuribohs aren't helpless. With all five on the field, I can use their special ability known as Star Defense to reduce all Battle Damage to zero."

Frowning, Jaden sighed, saying "Oh well, I'll just get you next turn. I'll call it a turn." (Yugi 7200, Jaden 7800)

Picking up his new card, Yugi called out "Kuribohs, reform Kuribabylon (1500/1000)!"

Forming up into a star formation, the five fur ball creatures created a puff of smoke and vanished, leaving behind a large bluish-grey fur ball once more.

"Kuribabylon, attack his Clayman with Horn Strike!"

Rushing forward, the large bluish-grey creature let out a small battle cry. Lowering it's horn to ram into the large round grey creature, the fur ball monster prepared to strike.

With only a few feet left before the fur ball creature would impact the large round grey warrior, Jaden called out "Not so fast, I activate Mud Max's special ability!"

Instead of striking the large round warrior, the horn of the fur ball creature struck the go-kart, easily piercing through it while the large round warrior leapt for safety. Once out of the kart, it exploded, forcing the large fur ball creature to retreat.

"Why did Kuribabylon strike your go-kart instead?" Yugi asked in confusion.

Smirking, Jaden remarked "Thanks to Mud Max, when Clayman would be destroyed, I can send it to the Graveyard instead and negate the attack. Also, I can now special summon one Elemental Hero from my hand, so I pick this, Elemental Hero Burstinatrix (1200/800)!"

A female creature with pale white skin in a red body suit that covered most of her body except part of her arms appeared. She had red gloves that came up to her elbows, but the fingers of the gloves were cut off revealing her skin instead. She had long black hair that fanned out with a bit of white at the ends. On her head was a golden flared out helmet, and her face was partially covered with a red mask that didn't cover her cheeks or mouth.

Lightly chuckling, Yugi said "You're full of surprises Jaden. I shall break Kuribabylon back up into the Kuriboh Brothers (300/200) x 5 once again."

Glowing slightly, the large fur ball creature exploded in a puff of smoke. Taking it's place were the five multicolored fur ball creatures.

"I believe that shall do it for me this turn." (Yugi 7200, Jaden 7800)


	79. Chapter 79: Dream, Pt 2

**Hello again everyone! Well, this week has proceeded slowly, but surely. Hmm, not too much to report on the home front. I set up my retirement stuff today, so that's all taken care of at the least. Other than that, nothing is new I suppose.**

**Story wise, **_**MtM**_** and **_**Another**_** are moving along. I've had time to work on both, with me finishing up some stuff in **_**MtM**__**Another**_** has been moving along well also, and I think by the end of the month, I'll be ready to start posting chapters on it.**

**Last time, all the victims of Legato and Zell were brought back, with Syrus and Zane reviving. Zane made a horrifying discovery that Zell is within him now, and has lost all control of his body to Zell. What plans does Zell have now? Then there is the return of Illidan, who made a promise to Marie to never leave her alone again. He was rather upset to learn of Jaden's sacrifice, but seems to have somewhat accepted it. Meanwhile, Jaden was saved from the Shadow Realm by Yami and given a chance to duel Yugi. Yami in the meantime took the four Egyptian God Cards and four Sacred Beast Cards away to put in someplace for safe keeping. Now Jaden gets to duel the King of Games to learn how he stacks up to him. Can Jaden win, or will Yugi prevail?**

**Wow, I have great news for everyone! We just surpassed **_**TWS**_** in reviews! I thank everyone for their reviews that pushed this story over the top and past my second largest record. Who knows, maybe we can surpass **_**ToP**_**, although I doubt it, but you never know. But thank you everyone again for your reviews. Without you guys, this story would just sit here and be nothing. I'm very thankful for all of you who read and post some kind of comments, which are very helpful.**

**Now then, without further ado, time to work on some reviews!**

**x-knight20: Thank you. Yep, Yami came and saved Jaden, but I didn't say he took the Egyptian Gods and Sacred Beasts to the realm of the Pharaoh… Where he took them is a question only he could answer (well, me too, lol). Thanks for the review!**

**Knives91: Thanks. Yep, things should be interesting in this duel. Yeah, Zell found a way to sneak out and keep alive. Thanks for the review!**

**Raymond Barrett: Thank you. It's possible Jaden could fulfill his dream and beat the King of Games, but Yugi could win too… It could go either way. True, with Zell out and about, what could happen now? I wouldn't worry about him finding something stronger. After all, he only has Zane's body. What could happen with that, lol? Thanks for the review!**

**DuelistBlake1852: Yep, things turned out alright. True, it did take a lot of courage for Jaden to be willing to sacrifice himself for his friends. Heh, yeah, Jaden got his deepest desired dream to come true, which is to face the King of Games himself. True that Jaden is unpredictable, meaning Yugi will have to be on edge to beat him. Thanks for the review!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Yep, Jaden didn't die, and he is back in the normal realm. Yes, Yugi gave Illidan a card. It was Final Sarcophagus. True, he didn't use it to beat Legato himself, but he used it to save Jaden and the world in the end. Hmm, Zell in Zane's body as an enemy in **_**MtM**_**? You never know! But there is plenty of time left in this story too… Thanks for the review!**

**Nathan: Yep, Jaden wasn't killed off. Heh, Yugi hung around long enough to duel him I suppose. Yeah, the Kuriboh Brothers is a cute set of cards, although if they became real, I don't know if they'd be truly useful. True that the scene with Zell and Zane doesn't bode well. That means things are going to happen, probably. Thanks that you thought my version of Hell Kaiser was bad enough, lol. I tried, what can I say, hehe. Thanks for the review!**

**JudaiAsuka-fan: Why hello, and welcome to the reviews. I do ponder if Jaden will win also… Wait, I know that answer! Lol, silly me. Thanks for the review!**

**Wow, that was a lot of reviews. Thank you all for them. I enjoyed reading and answering all of them. And again, I thank all of you for helping me reach one goal that I had set for this story. I had hopes that it would beat **_**TWS **_**in number of reviews, and it has, so thank you all for that. I look forward to the future as this story continues on. Again, thank you all. I hope all of you enjoy this next chapter. Till Monday, enjoy!**

**Chapter 79**

Quickly drawing his next card, Jaden grinned great big at it. Sweetness, this should work. I activate Burst Return! Thanks to this spell, I can send all Elemental Hero's on my field except Burstinatrix back to my hand. So come on back guys!"

Both the large round grey warrior and the blue and gold warrior instantly vanished from the field in a flash. Immediately, two cards materialized into Jaden's hand.

"Alright, it's time to mow your Kuribohs down, and I have the perfect card for it. I activate this, my Burst Impact! With this spell, so long as I have Elemental Hero Burstinatrix out on the field, I can send all other monsters on the field to the Graveyard! Take it away Burstinatrix!"

With eyes full of flames, the female warrior pulled her arms in close and began glowing light red. Letting out a soft growl, she slowly lowered her arms, revealing her flaming emerald green eyes. In a swift motion, she threw her arms down, igniting flames around her body. The flames quickly spread across the field, instantly incinerating all of the weaker fur ball creatures, leaving the air with the heavy smell of burnt fur.

Lightly growling with frustration, Yugi muttered "My Kuribohs…" 

"Gone but not forgotten, especially when it comes to your life points." Jaden remarked with a smile. "You see, for each monster Burstinatrix destroyed, you lose 300 life points. That means you lose a grand total of 1500 points!"

Upon those words being said, the flames that had spread across the field rekindled and surrounded Yugi, making him cry out in a bit of pain from the extreme heat as his points were lowered. Once the flames died down, he was lightly panting with a bit of sweat formed on his brow.

"Burstinatrix, it's time to hit him again, so direct attack with Flare Storm!"

Nodding to Jaden, the emerald eyed warrior leapt forward and formed a sphere of crimson flames in her right hand. In a throwing motion, she tossed the crimson flames at Yugi, hitting him square on, making him yelp out in pain.

"I think that'll be enough for now, so I'll call it a turn." (Yugi 4500, Jaden 7800)

Staring at Jaden once he slowed his breathing, Yugi lightly smiled. "_Hard to believe that at such a young age, Jaden has already developed these kind of skills. Most duelists only dream of becoming as good as he has. He reminds me so much of Illidan that it's scary._"

Turning his thoughts serious, he closed his eyes and mentally added "_Still, if I'm to test him truly, I must give him all I have got. So far, I've played reasonably hard, mostly to test the waters. Now it's time to hold nothing back._"

Reopening his eyes, Yugi smiled once more. Drawing his new card, he called out "You may have had a good run of luck so far Jaden, but I'm about to turn things around!"

Looking at the new card, he smiled again. Picking another card up from his hand, he said "I send this card to my Graveyard in order to special summon the monster known as The Tricky (2000/1200)."

Appearing onto the field was a monster dressed in a yellow and black with a blue cape on his back and a question mark on his chest and face. The creature looked more like a court jester than anything else.

"Tricky, attack Burstinatrix with Trickster Strike!"

Leaning forward, the yellow and black creature threw his arms out to his left side. With blinding speed, he crossed the field in seconds and was behind the female warrior. She barely had time to turn her head to look at the creature with horror before the creature struck her hard with a hard fist to her back. Upon impact, the female warrior cried out in pain and exploded into millions of pieces.

"Ah man…" Jaden muttered.

Lightly chuckling, Yugi picked up another card from his hand, saying "I shall place one card face down to end my turn. Come Jaden, show me now what you can truly do." (Yugi 4500, Jaden 7000)

Softly smiling, Jaden drew and excitedly said "I sure will! I play Polymerization, fusing Elemental Hero Sparkman (1600/1400) and Clayman (800/2000) together to form Elemental Hero Thunder Giant (2400/1500)!"

Reappearing onto the field were the blue and gold warrior with strange wing like structures on his back and the large round grey warrior. The two instantly swirled together, causing lightning to begin striking the ground. From the lightning appeared a large mostly yellow warrior, with purple on his legs and arms, and some white on his body as well. On his back were large white blade like wings, and his head was mostly covered by a helmet that revealed on his mouth.

Smirking, Yugi pointed at the new warrior and warmly said "Thank you Jaden, you fell right into my trap."

"What trap?" Jaden asked.

Clicking a button on his Duel Disk, Yugi held out his palm at the rising card, saying "This trap! I reveal Dark Renewal, which activates when you play a monster."

Rising up onto the field from the ground was a maroon colored coffin with a strange cross on it's lid.

"Now both your Thunder Giant and my The Tricky are sacrificed, allowing me to bring back a Spellcaster Type monster from my Graveyard!"

Scratching his nose, Jaden pondered for a moment what monsters Yugi had played. After a few moments of thinking, he said aloud "You haven't sent any Spellcasters to the Graveyard yet."

Smirking, Yugi asked confidently "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I mean, I've destroyed eight of your monsters, and those eight were not Spellcasters." Jaden explained.

Smirking once more, Yugi nodded and replied "True, but I sent a Spellcaster to my Graveyard on my own. Remember last turn when I summoned The Tricky?"

Thinking back, Jaden remembered Yugi placing a card into his Graveyard. "Of course, you sent it then!" he remarked.

"Yes, I did. It's now time to show you what I put in there! Go Dark Renewal, bring back my most faithful monster!"

Rising up till it was vertical, the coffin opened it's doors, sending out two beams of red light. The first grabbed hold of the large yellow creature, and the second took hold of the black and yellow monster. Each was sucked into the beam and pulled back into the coffin. The doors of the coffin instantly shut once the beams had returned. Smoke soon began pouring out of the cracks of the coffin till finally the doors opened once more.

From the thick smoke a figure appeared. The figure had on dark purple robes with some battle armor. The figure was easily distinguishable as a mage. In his right hand was a long green staff. His hair was purple, and his eyes the color of lilac. He had pale skin and wore a strange mage's hat. Leaping forward, he landed onto the field and crossed his arms.

Staring at the mage, Jaden smiled great big, exclaiming "I can hardly believe it! That's the Dark Magician (2500/2100)!"

Chuckling at Jaden's reaction, Yugi replied "This is a first that I've seen someone this excited over my monster. Just remember Jaden, he's out to get you now, so you better form a plan."

Nodding, Jaden examined the remaining card in his hand, saying "Since I haven't normal summoned a monster yet, I'll place Wroughtweiler (800/1200) in defense."

Materializing onto the field was a black mechanical dog with light blue on his head that ran along it's body.

"That's it for me." (Yugi 4500, Jaden 7000)

Picking up his new card quickly, Yugi examined his card. "I play the equip spell Dark Spear, and I add it to my Dark Magician!"

The green staff of the mage instantly began glowing. Uncrossing his arms, the mage pointed his staff at the ground. Within a moment, the staff transformed into a spear that appeared rather long and had a sharp pointed end.

"Thanks to Dark Spear, my Dark Magician now is allowed to do Trample Damage, meaning your monster won't save you Jaden."

Hearing Jaden lightly growl, Yugi called out "Dark Magician, attack his dog with Dark Spear Strike!"

Leaping into the air, the mage pulled his spear to his right side. While still coming down, he pushed it straight forward. With ease, the spear went through the mechanical dog, making it howl in pain upon impact.

"And don't forget, you take damage for the difference in our monster's points!"

Quickly stepping forward, the mage swung his spear at Jaden, striking him across the chest, making Jaden cry out in pain as he went to one knee.

Lightly panting, Jaden stood back up and lightly chuckled. "Pretty good Yugi, but you just triggered Wroughtweiler's special ability. When he goes to the Graveyard, I get to transfer one Polymerization card and one Elemental Hero each from my Graveyard to my hand. The monster I'll pick will be Elemental Hero Bubbleman."

Holding his hand over his Graveyard Slot, Jaden patiently waited while it glowed with a small white light. Slowly, the two cards came sliding out and into Jaden's hand. Once fully out, he placed both of them in his left hand.

"Not bad Jaden." Yugi commented. "I shall place this card face down to end my turn." (Yugi 4500, Jaden 5700)

Drawing, Jaden placed his new card in his left hand and grabbed a different card, saying "I'll kick things off this turn by summoning Elemental Hero Bubbleman (800/1200)!"

Appearing onto the field once more in a spray of bubbles was the warrior in blue with a white cape.

"Since he's all alone, that means I get two new cards."

Quickly picking up two more cards, Jaden examined them before saying "I play the spell Metamorphosis! With this, I can sacrifice Bubbleman to summon a Fusion Type monster with the same amount of stars. My new monster is this, Elemental Hero Neo Bubbleman (800/1200)!"

The blue warrior instantly began to morph into a newer form. His armor took on small fins, and his cape became a large white fin. His helmet changed as well, adding a set of fins onto the side of it.

"Next up, I equip Neo with the spell Bubble Blaster, raising his attack points by 800 (800 + 800 1600/1200)!"

Materializing above the blue warrior's head was a large bazooka like weapon with a bottle full of liquid. The weapon soon dropped into the waiting arms of the warrior who took up a one knee stance and pointed the weapon towards Yugi's field.

"Alright Neo Bubbleman, attack Dark Magician with Bubble Slamming Stream!"

Shocked at Jaden's declaration, Yugi called out "But Jaden, your Bubbleman only has 1600 attack points! He has no chance against Dark Magician."

"We'll see! Do it Neo!" Jaden remarked.

Taking aim, the blue warrior aimed his bazooka at the purple robed mage. Without hesitation, he fired off a stream of water and bubbles at the mage, who only stood staring at the oncoming stream with his arms crossed.

"Dark Magician, counter attack with Dark Spear Strike!" Yugi called out.

Nodding to Yugi, the purple robed mage brought his spear into attack position and slammed it into the oncoming stream of water and bubbles. Rushing forward, the mage began pushing the blast backwards towards the source. Finally reaching it, the mage prepared to strike the blue warrior, but at the last moment as the spear was about to hit the warrior, the warrior moved his bazooka in the line of fire. Upon impact, the bazooka shattered.

Shocked, Yugi asked "Huh, why did that happen?"

Smirking, Jaden remarked "Kind of simple. When Bubbleman would be destroyed due to a battle, the Bubble Blaster takes the hit instead (1600 – 800 800/1200). Plus, there's more. When Neo Bubbleman battles, he destroys the monster he battles with!"

Pointing his small hose blaster at the mage, the blue warrior prepared to fire off a shot. The purple mage could only gasp in shock at this and attempted to jump back, but it was too late. With pinpoint accuracy, the blue warrior released a burst of water and bubbles from the blaster strapped to his wrist directly at the mage.

"I don't think so Jaden, for I have a trap! Go Dark Illusion!" Yugi declared.

The stream of water and bubbles were only an inch away from the mage when without warning, he vanished. He soon reemerged onto the field with his arms crossed and his indifferent look.

"Hey, what happened!?" Jaden demanded.

Lightly chuckling, Yugi pointed at his mage, saying "When Dark Illusion is activated, Dark Magician can't be destroyed by spell, trap, or monster effects for the remainder of turn it was activated."

"No way! Bubbleman had a clear shot on him too…" Jaden grumbled.

Smiling, Yugi added "Jaden, since Dark Illusion was activated, it's secondary effect kicks in, allowing you to draw one new card."

Picking up a new card, Jaden examined it momentarily before saying "I'll throw down two face downs and call it a turn." (Yugi 4500, Jaden 5700)

Drawing a new card, Yugi quickly turned it around to show Jaden, saying "I play the spell Pot of Greed, allowing me to draw two new cards."

Quickly grabbing two cards from his deck, Yugi continued on. "I next activate the equip spell Book of Secret Arts, raising my Dark Magician's points by 300 (2500 + 300 2800/2100 + 300 2400)!"

A green book appeared behind the purple robed mage and began sending out rainbow colored energy waves that dug into the mage's back. He screamed out as if in pain, but soon his scream changed to one that sounded like a strengthening yell. Once the energy waves vanished, the mage's body began to glow with a dark purple aura. Looking up at Jaden, the mage smirked.

"Next, I play a spell known as Thousand Knives! So long as I have Dark Magician on my field, I can now destroy one monster on your field."

Materializing all around the purple robed mage were several glowing knives with maroon colored hilts.

"The monster I choose is no surprise, so destroy his Bubbleman!" Yugi declared.

Swinging his spear, the mage sent the knives forward. Each knife dug into the blue warrior, making him cry out in pain before finally exploding into millions of pieces, leaving Jaden only to growl with frustration.

"Dark Magician, direct attack with Dark Spear Strike!"

Screaming out, the mage leapt into the air and began to move towards Jaden with incredible speed.

Turning his palm to his face down card, Jaden quickly called out "Not so fast Yugi, I'm not done yet! Go A Hero Emerges!"

The mage instantly stopped at the sight of the new trap card and backed a way a little bit.

"When I activate this trap, you get to choose a card randomly from my hand, and if it's a monster, I get to special summon it. Of course, there is a problem with that right now."

Holding his left hand up to reveal only one card, he remarked "I'm holding one card, meaning it doesn't matter, so let's get right down to business. I play Elemental Hero Necroshade (1600/1800)!"

In a small flash, a red skinned warrior with silver like wires outlining his body, huge white and red shoulder pads, and claw like hands appeared in a defensive stance. His face was completely covered in red with no signs of a mouth, and he had light red eyes.

"Not bad Jaden, but not enough." Yugi commented. "Dark Magician, take his monster down!"

Moving forward once more, the mage held his spear out in front of his body and pierced through the red warrior, which let out a soft cry of pain. The creature soon exploded, allowing the mage to continue forward and slash Jaden once again with his spear. Falling to one knee panting, Jaden grabbed hold of his chest with a pained look.

"I end my move for now." (Yugi 4500, Jaden 4700)

With labored breaths, Jaden stood back up. Still holding his chest, he tried slowing his breathing. After a moment, he finally caught his breath and smiled.

"This is one sweet duel so far!" he declared with a big goofy grin.

Slightly shocked, Yugi mentally pondered why Jaden was so happy. "_I keep pounding away at him, but he keeps coming back for more. Heh, he is so much like Illidan. I wonder, can he actually manage to hang on though?_"

Drawing, Jaden called out "I'm not done with this duel yet, so check this out! I activate the spell Graceful Charity, letting me draw three new cards. Once I'm done though, I have to discard two from my hand."

Without hesitation, he quickly drew three cards and examined them before picking two. "I'll toss these two cards to the Graveyard. Next, I play the spell E – Emergency Call, allowing me to grab an Elemental Hero from my deck and add it to my hand."

Pulling his deck out, Jaden sifted through it till finally he picked a card and called out while showing the card "My choice is this, my Elemental Hero Neos!"

"Why choose that monster? He's a seven star creature, meaning you'll need two sacrifices to even summon it." Yugi argued.

Smirking, Jaden replied "I have a very good reason. You see, with Necroshade chillin' out in the Graveyard, I can use his special ability to normal summon any Elemental Hero I want. So watch as I summon Elemental Hero Neos (2500/2000)!"

Above the field, a flash of light without warning appeared, and suddenly a powerful white warrior with a slicked back horn on his head and spikes coming out from his elbow joints materialized. He had a bit of red lining on his body, along with a bit of blue as well. On his chest was a blue circle.

"I think that'll do it for me. Come on and give me your best shot!" (Yugi 4500, Jaden 4700)

Drawing his card, Yugi inspected it momentarily before placing it in his left hand. Frowning, he pondered over Jaden's previous move.

"_What could Jaden be up to? He knows Neos only has 2500 attack points, and that's 300 less than Dark Magician's, so he has no chance at winning a battle. Plus, he has no face down cards, nor any cards in his hand. But he seemed so confident in his move. Why though?_"

Finally tired of analyzing the situation, Yugi made a decision. "Jaden, I don't know what you're up to, but it won't fake me out. Dark Magician, attack Neos with Dark Spear Strike!"

Leaping into the air, the purple robed mage swung the large spear to his right side. Preparing to fall towards the ground, the mage moved it to straight in front of his body and began his descent towards the white warrior with increasing speed.

Smirking at the oncoming attack, Jaden called out "I don't think so! I activate the special ability of a monster in my Graveyard known as Necro Guardna (600/1300). By removing him from my Graveyard, I can negate your attack. Go, end his attack now Necro Guardna!"

A warrior dressed in grey, maroon, and black armor appeared instantly in the path of the purple mage. The warrior had long white hair that fell to his knees. His armor was spiked, and seemingly built to catch attacks. In a single motion, he grabbed hold of the green spear the mage was wielding and threw it off course, forcing the mage to return to his side of the field with a small grunt. The warrior then vanished, leaving only the two monsters to stare one another down.

Slightly smirking, Yugi remarked "Nice move Jaden. I'm knew you wouldn't leave yourself that wide open. I shall place one card face down and end my turn." (Yugi 4500, Jaden 4700)

Quickly drawing his next card, Jaden smiled, saying "I think it's time for a change in scenery. You might want to grab a hard hat for this though. I play the field spell Skyscraper!"

Holding his Duel Disk vertical, Jaden tapped the end of his Duel Disk, which promptly opened a small slot. Once the card was placed within the slot, the slot retracted into the Duel Disk, causing the Duel Disk to shimmer with rainbow colors. Instantly, large buildings began shooting out of the ground and the ground itself transformed into blacktop. A few moments later, the large buildings were at full height and a full moon was over the field.

Looking around, Yugi asked "What is this place?"

"It's my Skyscraper field spell, and in here, Elemental Heroes gain an additional 1000 attack points when battling a stronger monster." Jaden informed.

"What!?" Yugi asked in complete shock. "That means Dark Magician…"

"Is going down!" Jaden finished. "Neos (2500 + 1000 3500/2000), attack Dark Magician with Cosmic Crush!"

Leaping into action, the white warrior pulled back his right arm and began charging dark blue energy within his hand. The purple robed mage only watched in surprise and glanced back at Yugi for help.

Nodding back, Yugi called out "I don't think so Jaden, for I have a face down spell card! Go Magical Hats, conceal and protect my Dark Magician!"

Materializing above the purple robed mage was a black top hat with a red and white checker pattern right above the brim and a large yellow question mark on the main hat. The hat quickly fell over top of the mage and instantly expanded from one hat to four, then back to one and then once again to four.

"You'll have to find my Dark Magician if you want to beat him."

Lightly growling, Jaden sighed, saying "Fine then, Neos, attack the hat on the far left!"

Continuing on, the white warrior punched the far left hat hard with his glowing fist, easily crushing the hat, but nothing was revealed underneath of it.

"Darn, I missed." Jaden growled out. In an instant, his mood shifted to a cheery one, saying "Oh well, I'll get you next turn." (Yugi 4500, Jaden 4700)


	80. Chapter 80: Dream, Pt 3

**Hey there everyone! Well, this weekend wasn't too bad. Friday night, I spent most of it at work, doing a bit of testing and then some gaming. It was a good time and all. The rest of the weekend wasn't too bad either, although it sucked that my mate had to work the evening shift both days. Oh well, but nothing really happened I suppose. Watched Naruto Saturday night, and then watched the Sarah Conner Chronicles last night, which I must say, was pretty interesting thus far. Lol, I had to laugh at the one scene where the female terminator was digging a bullet out with Sarah sitting there, and Sarah commented she may want to holster those (terminator was topless, hehe). That series looks to be rather interesting, and I hope I can continue to watch it.**

**This weekend was a good time for writing. I did a good bit on **_**Another**_**, and got some ideas for **_**MtM**_**. I just need to write the **_**MtM**_** part out, but I think I know how it'll go down. I'm still in the thought process that **_**Another **_**will begin posting this month, so have some faith in that. Also, **_**MtM**_**'s posting date is questionable. I know for certain, much like **_**FG**_**, it will not be ready to begin immediately upon the end of this story. It will most likely be a month or two possibly, much like how **_**FG**_** was a few months after **_**TWS**_** wrapped up. Please do be patient with me and ardee. We're working hard on getting **_**MtM**_** done, but at the same time, life happens. Anyways, we'll try to get it done in a timely manner.**

**Last time, Jaden's dream duel with Yugi continued on with him summoning Elemental Hero Neos to combat Dark Magician. The two are squaring off, with each seemingly equal in power. Who will get the upper hand, and if they get it, how long will that last? And more importantly, can Jaden make his dream come true and beat the King of Games, or will Yugi defend his title once more?**

**Ok, moving on, time for the reviews!**

**Nathan: LOL! No problem for playing Metamorphosis on Bubbleman to get Neo Bubbleman. I figured I'd stick with the show's effect to in summoning him. Yes, it makes so much more sense than OCG does. I still don't get why they botched that one up so badly… Glad that the duel keeps getting better. LOL! You know, I got to pondering about the saying "ja'ne" myself, and I actually did look it up. It roughly means see you later or until next time. Go figure, hehe. Thanks for the review!**

**Knives91: Yep, the battle rolls on. Thanks for the review.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thank you. Hmm, a duel to end it all… it could be like the graduation duel from season 1. True though that you could be wrong. I'll never say, hehe. Yes, having Zell taking over Zane was kind of showing that's how Hell Kaiser was sort of born. I like Hell Kaiser myself over Dark Zane. It sounds so much better. Thanks for the review!**

**sirbj: Why hello, and welcome to the reviews. Thanks for adding me as a favorite author. Thanks about the duel. True, most people want to see a duel with Yugi and Jaden, just to see who is the better duelist. A tag team duel with Seto and Yugi vs. Illidan and Jaden would be interesting to watch too, although Jaden and Chazz didn't do too well against Illidan and Marie, lol. Then again, Illidan and Marie are a very tough team anyways. Yes, the whole Zell taking over Zane thing should be interesting. Thanks very much for your review. I hope to see you around again.**

**DuelistBlake1852: Very true, neither Yugi nor Jaden can out due one another. It's as if they're stuck in a deadlock. Lol, yes Yami, Yugi pointed out that Jaden is truly Illidan and Marie's descendant. That will become more apparent soon enough. LOL! Nice ending with Yami chasing you with his hair. I'm sure it's sharp enough to pierce anything. I mean seriously, he has too much hair gel in it. Thanks for the review!**

**Well, the reviews were very fun to do this morning. Thanks to everyone who submitted one. And thank you to those who have added my stories to their favorites recently. It just occurred to me that I no longer have those names in my email, which sucks, lol. Oh well, but thank you all for adding me and for your continuous support through reviews and adds to your favorites. It means a lot to me to see my stories are liked and that people have comments on them. I always enjoy reading the feedback. Thank you again to everyone for your support.**

**Alright, that's it for me today. I should post Wednesday like always, so till then, I hope you all have a good few days. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 80**

Slowly drawing his next card, Yugi studied it for a moment before saying "I'll place this face down and end my turn." (Yugi 4500, Jaden 4700)

Drawing his card without hesitation, Jaden looked it over. Looking up, he called out "Neos, attack the far left hat with Cosmic Crush!"

Leaping into action, the white warrior pulled back his right fist and sent blue energy into it. Coming down hard, he pummeled the hat before him with his blue glowing fist, only to find yet another empty hat.

"You're down to two hats Yugi. That Dark Magician can't hide forever. I'll end my turn." (Yugi 4500, Jaden 4700)

Picking up a new card, Yugi smiled. "I may not be able to hide Dark Magician much longer, but he will outlast your monster. I play the spell Ties of the Brethren! First, I must give up 1000 life points. After that, I'm allowed to special summon two level four monsters from my deck in defense mode."

While Yugi's life point counter decreased, he pulled his deck out and sorted through it. After a moment, he picked out two cards and placed the deck back in it's slot. Placing both cards horizontally onto his Duel Disk, Yugi said "The two monsters I've picked are Big Shield Guardna (100/2600) and Obnoxious Celtic Guardian (1400/1200)."

Appearing first onto the field was a warrior with long black hair wearing a teal and purple shirt with no sleeves, orange pants, and had a huge shield that covered almost all of his body whom was kneeling. Next to appear was an elf warrior wearing brown long sleeved shirt, tan pants, a purple cape, and green and silver armor with a green helmet. In his right hand was a long broad sword that he used to defend himself while in the kneeling stance.

"I shall now place Big Shield Guardna under the remaining empty hat, making it more difficult for you to find my Dark Magician."

The remaining hat instantly lifted up off the field and quickly covered the warrior. The two hats then began swirling wildly in circles till finally they came to a stop.

"I end my move at that." (Yugi 3500, Jaden 4700)

Picking up a new card, Jaden glanced at it and smirked. "I think it's time your Dark Magician came out of hiding, and I'll do it with this! I equip Neos with the spell card known as Assault Armor!"

A golden aura instantly began forming around the white warrior, giving his white skin a golden glowing color.

"Next, I activate the special ability of Assault Armor. By sending it to the Graveyard, Neos can now attack twice this turn!"

Instantly, the warrior lost his golden glow and returned to his normal white skin tone.

"Dark Magician is finished this turn! Neos, take the hat on the left with Cosmic Crush!"

Moving forward in the blink of an eye, the white warrior was on top of the hat. Throwing his fist forward with blue energy swirling around it, he smashed through the hat easily enough, but a loud thud sound was heard instantly. With the hat debris clearing, it was made clear he had hit the warrior with his large shield.

"Nice try Jaden, but you attacked Big Shield Guardna, who has less attack points than your Neos, meaning Skyscraper couldn't help him out in taking down my monster (3500 – 1000 2500/2000). Of course, Big Shield Guardna now has to switch to attack mode, but I'm not worried." Yugi pointed out.

Smiling, Jaden only eyed the lonely remaining hat that instantly vanished in a puff of smoke. Coming from the smoke was the powerful mage in purple robes. As the mage reappeared, the warrior with the large shield stood up from his sitting position, showing his readiness to battle.

Lightly chuckling, Jaden said "I may have missed my first try, but don't forget, Dark Magician is out in the clear, and Neos can attack again. Neos, attack Dark Magician now with Cosmic Crush (2500 1000 3500/2000)!"

Rushing forward with incredible speed, the white warrior powered up his right fist once more, sending blue energy swirling around it.

Gritting his teeth, Yugi called out "I don't think so Jaden. I play the trap Ambush Shield! Thanks to this trap, I can sacrifice one of my monsters on the field and add it's defense points to Dark Magician's attack points for one turn. My target is none other than Big Shield Guardna (2800 2600 5400/2400)!"

Vanishing into a cloud of particles, the large shield warrior's particles began surrounding the purple robed mage. Instantly, the mage's strength increased. Narrowly dodging the attack made by the warrior, the mage retaliated by stabbing his spear into the white warrior's side. Instantly, the white warrior cried out in pain and exploded into millions of pieces.

"NO, NEOS!" Jaden cried out. Cringing, Jaden let out a loud audible sigh, he slowly said "I'm not done. I play the spell O – Over Soul, allowing me to bring Neos back to the field (2500/2000)!"

Reappearing instantly onto the field, the large white warrior took up a fighting stance once more.

"I end my turn." (Yugi 3500, Jaden 2700)

Drawing his card quickly, Yugi smirked and said "I play the spell Card of Sanctity. We each are now allowed to draw till we hold six cards in our hands."

Both drew six cards exactly. Smiling, Yugi called out "I'm afraid these cards didn't help you out Jaden. I sacrifice Obnoxious Celtic Guardian to summon Dark Magician Girl (2000/1700)!"

Instantly the elf warrior vanished and in his place, a young woman with long blonde hair, bright blue eyes, wearing a skimpy blue and pink mage's dress that showed her cleavage quite well with the dress barely covering her back side, a blue and pink mage's hat, and a staff in her right hand took to the field.

"Now then, time to take care of that field spell. I activate the spell Mystical Space Typhoon! This let's me destroy one spell or trap card, so say farewell to your Skyscraper!"

Without warning, a large typhoon began tearing through the city buildings on the field, easily destroying them one by one. Soon enough, the entire city was leveled, leaving nothing behind but a softly growling Jaden.

"Dark Magician, attack his Neos with Dark Spear Strike!"

Leaping forward, the purple mage swung his mage out to his right side. Once he reached the peak of his jump and began falling downwards, the mage moved the spear to his front and came down hard onto the white warrior, easily piercing right through him. The white warrior could only cry out in pain before exploding, leaving Jaden alone on his field.

"Dark Magician Girl, show him your Burning Magic Attack!"

Winking at Jaden, the female mage began twirling her scepter till she finally pointed at him. A pink sphere of magical energy instantly formed at the tip of the scepter and was launched straight at Jaden. The blast hit him hard, making him cry out in pain as he slid backwards with his arms crossed.

Once the blast cleared, Jaden was seen barely standing. After a moment, he fell forward onto one knee, panting heavily.

"I place this card face down and end my turn. The end is coming Jaden, so prepare for it." (Yugi 3500, Jaden 400)

Heavily panting, Jaden sat on his one knee for a few minutes, trying desperately to catch his breath. Finally, he managed to and smiled.

Puzzled, Yugi pondered on Jaden's smile. "_Why the smile? He should be ready to give up, yet he keeps coming back for more._"

Standing up with a bit of a wobble, Jaden lightly chuckled and said "Man, I haven't been pummeled like that since last year."

Looking confidently at Yugi, he added "Still, I'm not done yet! So just watch this!"

Picking up a new card, Jaden smiled. "I play this, the spell The Warrior Returning Alive, allowing me to bring one Warrior Type monster from my Graveyard to my hand. I'll pick this, Elemental Hero Neos."

Instantly, Jaden's Duel Disk's Graveyard Slot glowed and pushed out the monster card into Jaden's waiting hand. Picking it up quickly, he held onto it while grabbing another card from his left hand. Turning both to Yugi, he smiled, saying "Next, I activate the spell Fake Hero, allowing me to special summon any Elemental Hero from my hand, so I pick Neos (2500/2000)!"

Rematerializing onto the field instantly, the white warrior took up his usual fighting stance.

"Time I play this, my spell known as R – Righteous Justice! Thanks to this, for each Elemental Hero out on my field, I can destroy one spell or trap card on your field. My pick is that, your face down card!"

Glowing red, the spell card image fired a beam straight at the face down, instantly revealing it to be a trap.

"No, Mirror Force!" Yugi growled out.

Smiling, Jaden commented "Sweet, I'm glad I got rid of that! Next up is Pot of Greed, meaning two new cards for me."

Quickly picking up two cards, Jaden smiled once more, saying "It's over for Dark Magician! I summon Neo-Spacian Dark Panther (1000/500)."

Instantly materializing onto the field was a black panther with a black cape tied around it's neck. The cat lightly growled and glared towards the two mages.

"I'm not done yet, because I'm bringing out another Neo-Spacian. I play the spell Common Soul, allowing me to pick target one of my monsters, and I'll pick Neos. Next, I can special summon from my hand another Neo-Spacian, and I'll pick this one, Neo-Spacian Glow Moss (300/900)!"

A glowing light green creature, which looked like a strange alien, with only two black holes for eyes appeared onto the field.

"Time to show you what's about to happen! I'm merging my three monsters together by Contact Fusion! This allows me to do a fusion without having to use Polymerization, but the monsters are returned to my deck instead of being sent to my Graveyard, plus the new monster I summon returns to my deck when my turn is over. But that's a price I'm willing to pay. Go, Neos, merge together with Glow Moss and Dark Panther to create…"

All three monsters instantly leaped into the air, with the white warrior taking up the middle and the other two flanking him on his left and right. Slowly, the two flanking the warrior began to move closer to him and a blinding light instantly flooded the field. Once the light died down, only one monster stood in the wake of the light. It was a mostly white creature with black forming on most of it's lower body with light green lights gleaming from traces on his body. The new warrior had a large wing span that had white outlines and red skin on the inside of the wings. The warrior's hands had large white claws that appeared rather sharp.

"… Elemental Hero Chaos Neos (3000/2500)!" Jaden declared.

Staring in surprise, Yugi mumbled "That thing, it reminds me of Illidan's Chaos monsters."

"Elemental Hero Chaos Neos, attack Dark Magician with Chaos Swipes!" Jaden called out, instantly snapping Yugi out of his daze.

Flying forward at an incredible speed, the warrior was on top of the mage before he could react. With a single swipe of his large white claws, the mage was cut in half, leaving the female mage alone.

Slightly growling in frustration, Yugi grumbled "Dark Magician…"

"Gone, but not forgotten." Jaden called out with a smile. Pulling a card out of his left hand, he continued on. "Next up, I activate the spell Contact Out! This let's me send Chaos Neos back to my Fusion Deck, but then, I'm allowed to special summon from my deck the three monsters that formed Chaos Neos, so come on back Elemental Hero Neos (2500/2000), Neo-Spacian Dark Panther (1000/500), and Neo-Spacian Glow Moss (300/900)!"

Instantly, the large black and white creature split into three spheres of light. Once the spheres landed onto the ground, each took up a shape of a monster. The one on the left took up the form of the black panther with a black cape. On the right of the middle sphere, the form of the light green creature appeared. In the middle, the powerful white warrior took up his usual stance.

"It's not my style to beat up on women normally, but to win this duel, the girl has to go. Neos, attack Dark Magician Girl with Cosmic Crush!"

Rushing forward with his fist glowing bright blue, the powerful white warrior leapt into the air a few feet away from the young female mage, who stared wide eyed at the warrior.

Gritting his teeth, Yugi called out "Before Neos attacks, let me inform you about Dark Magician Girl's special ability. She gains 300 attack points for Dark Magician being in my Graveyard (2000 300 2300/1700)."

The female mage lightly glowed pink, but her eyes were still full of fear while tracking the white warrior coming towards her.

"Still not enough to beat Neos!" Jaden quickly replied.

The white warrior immediately slammed his fist into the female mage, blowing her away into millions of pieces.

Pointing at Yugi, Jaden declared "Dark Panther and Glow Moss, direct attack with Dark Swipes and Glow Lance!"

Swiftly moving forward, the dark panther swiped Yugi hard with his sharp clawed paw, making Yugi instantly cry out in pain. He wasn't allowed a moment's rest though, for the light green creature threw a green lance straight at him which hit him square on and pierced his chest, making him fall to one knee with heavy breathing.

"I'll throw down a few face downs and call it a turn." (Yugi 1800, Jaden 400)

Panting heavily, Yugi remained on his one knee for a few minutes. Seeing this, Jaden asked "Are you okay Yugi?"

Weakly smiling, Yugi nodded. With ragged breaths, he stood back up and closed his eyes, seemingly concentrating on slowing his breathing. After a few moments, he finally caught his breath and reopened his eyes with a smile on his face.

"This duel has pushed me pretty hard Jaden. I must say, I haven't had a duel like this since back in the old days when I used to duel Illidan, Seto Kaiba, and Joey Wheeler. You've pushed me hard, which is a true accomplishment." Yugi kindly said with a smile.

Turning serious as he drew his next card, he examined it and said "But this duel isn't over yet! I begin my turn by playing Monster Reborn! This spell is rather famous, so you know it's use. I now bring back Dark Magician (2500/2100) from my Graveyard!"

Appearing without a moment's hesitation was the purple robed mage once more. He instantly crossed his arms with his staff in hand upon his reappearance.

Holding a card up, Yugi calmly said "It's time to end this duel Jaden. You've played well, but it's over. I activate the spell Dark Magic Attack, allowing me to destroy all of your spell and trap cards. Whatever you had planned is gone now, so do it Dark Magician! Blast his cards with Dark Magic Attack!"

Aiming his staff at the three face down cards, the mage sent a wave of energy to his staff. It instantly began glowing at the tip with a bright glow of green magical energy. Without a bit of hesitation, the purple mage released a blast of green energy straight for the cards, seemingly focusing on getting rid of them.

Quickly swinging his right arm in front of himself to his right side, Jaden called out "Not so fast Yugi, I play a spell card! Go Emergency Provisions! Thanks to this card, by kicking a couple of spell/trap cards to the Graveyard, I gain a 1,000 points a piece. I'll go ahead and get rid of both my face downs, so farewell Polymerization and a sweet trap called Dummy Marker. Since it's destroyed, it activates next, allowing me to draw one more card."

Drawing a card, Jaden placed it into his left hand and added " Now I gain two grand in life points."

Just as the blast was about to hit, all three cards instantly vanished from the field, leaving the green blast of energy nowhere to strike and it simply exploded in mid-air.

Softly growling, Yugi roughly said "Very well, then Dark Magician, take out Glow Moss! Dark Magic Attack!"

Twirling his scepter, the purple robed mage let out a battle cry and pointed his staff at the light green creature. The mage quickly released a green sphere of energy straight at the alien creature, which just stared on at the blast. In a huge explosion, the blast scored a hit, pushing Jaden backwards a bit.

"I place a card face down and end my turn." (Yugi 1800, Jaden 200)

Wiping the sweat off of his brow, Jaden drew his next card and studied it for a moment. Smirking great big, he said "Time to take Dark Magician down again! I play the spell Gift of the Martyr. Here's how it works. By sacrificing one of my monsters on my field, I can strengthen another's attack points by the sacrificed monster's attack points. I'll give up Dark Panther and transfer his strength to Neos (2500 1000 3500/2000)!"

The dark panther on the field instantly vanished, but the white warrior immediately began glowing with a white aura. He raised his fists into the air as his body seemed to grow stronger and stronger.

"Neos, take it to him! Cosmic Crush!"

Leaping forward with blinding speed, the white warrior delivered a powerful blue aura fist into the gut of the purple robed mage. The mage barely had time to notice the hit as he simply looked at the warrior in complete shock before exploding.

Smirking, Yugi pressed a button on his Duel Disk, raising his face down card. "Nice try Jaden, but I have a trap. I play Mirage Ruler! This powerful trap activates when all monsters on my field are destroyed in one turn. Now I can special summon them back and restore my life points to what they were when this turn started. So welcome back Dark Magician (2500/2100) once more!"

Immediately reappearing onto Yugi's field was the purple robed mage. He took up his usual crossed arm stance and glared at the white warrior.

Grunting, Jaden dejectedly said "I end my turn." (Yugi 1800, Jaden 200)

Picking up a new card, Yugi examined it before placing it into a spell/trap slot. "I lay this card face down and end my turn." (Yugi 1800, Jaden 200)


	81. Chapter 81: Dream, Pt 4

**Hello there everyone. Well, this week has been pretty cool thus far. I saw my grandfather Monday night, and he was doing rather well. My grandmother told me he had physical therapy that morning, and had lifted his left leg off the bed 10 times for the therapist. She then put a coffee can under his left leg and had him lift it above it 5 more times. She then worked his right side of his body, which he did well. He ate a good breakfast, apparently a large lunch, sat in his chair (chair on wheels called a Jerry Chair) for a few hours, and then went back to bed. He also stayed awake about all day, but he was tiring, that much as for certain when I arrived. I sat and talked with him for a while, asking if he remembered certain things, which he did for the most part. And a lot of what he talked to me about made sense. Heh, he told me I could stay the night if I wanted, which I had to decline since my mate was expecting me home, plus I had work the next day. Still, I had a good evening with him and my grandmother.**

**Story wise, I've gotten a bit more done on **_**MtM**_**, and some done on **_**Another**_**. Both are moving forward, so with a little luck, I may get **_**Another**_** done enough by the end of the month to post. **_**MtM**_**'s release date is a bit up in the air right now. Like I mentioned Monday, it'll more than likely be a few months or more away, unfortunately. Lol, that's what happens when you don't focus on a story for a long time I suppose. Anyways, I'll try to get both done before too much longer.**

**Last time around, the duel between Yugi and Jaden roared on, with each losing their favorite monsters, only to resurrect them again and then lose them once more. The battle is far from over, but the question is can both keep up this monumental battle, or will one finally fall?**

**WOW! I had so many reviews from this previous chapter! Thank you everyone for those reviews! Just wow, I'm surprised. Seeing that many reviews has made me realize that beating my previous review record could be possible. Heh, you never know. Maybe if this keeps up, the old record will be beaten. Mathematically, I think it is possible, but if it don't happen, I won't be upset, lol. But still, thank you everyone for those reviews. I was shocked when I looked them all over at how many people had reviewed. Thanks so much for it.**

**And now then, moving on, time to answer the reviews!**

**x-knight20: Lol, it seems I'm always answering your review first. That's fine, but it just feels that way I suppose, hehe. Thanks for the comment on the chapter. It's cool about not reviewing much last week. Real life happens, so don't worry about it. RL is more important than reviews or stories, that much is for certain.**

**pink-kiss-candy: Yeah, Jaden is getting pwned a bit, lol. True, it's Yugi doing the pwning, lol. Thanks for the review.**

**Metal Overlord 2.0: LOL! Yes, stop blinking. I stopped long ago, hehe. Thanks about the duel thus far. Yep, Jaden didn't get taken away by the Shadows. Heh, yeah, Zell is on a comeback tour apparently in Zane's body. True, he is worse than Legato really. Legato had standards he set for himself for the most part, while Zell has none and does as he pleases (Marie knows that much for sure, lol). Very true, it's hard to tell what Zell will do now that he's without Legato and has commandeered Zane's body. Heh, I suppose it is like when Majin Buu killed Babidi off in DBZ, minus the massive explosion to celebrate his freedom. Cool that you finished your third chapter. I need to take a look, once I get freed up. Sheesh, writing takes away all my time, leaving little for reading, lol. Thanks for the review!**

**Knives91: They should be running out of cards at this rate, lol. True, that would be kind of hilarious that they ran out of cards before the end of the duel. Thanks for the review!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Actually, that's the show's effect that says you have to pay a 1000 for it's effect. When I looked it up on a site, it had nothing about paying a grand for it's effect, although I debated on using it or not. I choose not to since the site said it didn't apply. I did however goof on Glow Moss, which you caught. I completely forgot that when he attacks or is attacked, his effect kicks in regardless of whether you want him to use his effect or not. I should have realized that, but when I wrote it, I ignored it, and then after I realized it, I figured out it would be a pain in the butt, lol. The show ignored it's effect a few times as well, thus I ignored it that time, I suppose. Heh, I hate that card's effect too. I play it in my deck at home against my mate, and it's just as hurtful as helpful… I usually only use it for Contact Fusion and never attack with it. Thanks for the corrections though, and thanks for the review!**

**Raymond: Thanks. Heh, it seemed to be over when Yugi played Dark Magic Attack, but not quite. Things are still interesting though. True, it was a good strategy to use Big Shield Guardna and Obnoxious Celtic Guardian as shields for Dark Magician. Thanks for the review!**

**Nathan: Yes, both Jaden and Yugi are avoiding defeat and going back and forth, but neither can keep that up forever I figure. True, they could deck out before either winning. LOL! I can keep going forever and ever, lol. Thanks for the review!**

**JudaiAsuka-fan: LOL! I shall let you know who wins soon enough. Thanks for the review!**

**sirbj: Yeah, they're neck and neck, with neither showing any signs of stopping. So true, neither one can gain the lead, or at least for long. Heh, glad to hear that the Zell taking over Zane was a bit unexpected, and I don't doubt that this is the last we'll hear about Zell. Oh, I hadn't realized you had been reading since **_**ToP**_**. Lol, sorry about not realizing you had been reading for a while. I lose track of everyone who has my stories on story alert or favs all the time. I apologize for that. Thank you for your review though, it was very appreciated. Thanks for the review!**

**DuelistBlake1852: Yep, neither will back down. True, only one can be a winner, unless you have a draw. I think it is hair gel. Has to be, since it stays standing up even in a tornado. Yeah, I heard about the small error with Mirage Ruler. The show has it take away 1000 points, but when I read the card effect in an episode guide, it said nothing about the loss of points, so I decided to go with the no points lost effect. LOL! Run Blake, run! (/Puts foot out and trips Yami, effectively having him tumble head first and get his hair stuck in the ground, leaving him vertical while balancing himself on his hair.\) Wow, that's some seriously strong hair gel… Thanks for the review!**

**Wow, that was a lot of work. Sheesh, I had no idea my reviews would be that long! Not that I'm complaining, but I'm just shocked. It took me like a half an hour to an hour to do them, lol. It was great! Thank you everyone for your reviews. I appreciate them greatly, and thank you to everyone who caught the mistakes I had in my story. True, most of them were not intentional, but they happened regardless, so thank you all for pointing them out.**

**Alright, for now, I'm done with everything, so here is the chapter. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 81**

Drawing, Jaden examined his new card and smiled. "Let's see if I can wrap this duel up this time. I play Pot of Greed, which you of course know means I draw two cards."

Grabbing two cards off the top of his deck, Jaden finally said "Next up is this, my Silent Doom! Thanks to this spell, I can bring back one monster from my Graveyard to the field in defense, so I pick Elemental Hero Burstinatrix (1200/800)!"

Rising up onto the field in a kneeling position was the female warrior in red spandex. Her emerald eyes stayed trained on the purple robed mage, seemingly watching his moves to make sure he didn't do anything.

"Next up is this spell, my Spy Hero. Thanks to this, I just send two cards from the top of my deck to the Graveyard and then I can take a random spell card from your Graveyard and use it."

Upon picking up two cards and placing them into his Graveyard, Jaden watched as a shadowy figure with a mask appeared. He then vanished, but soon reappeared beside of Yugi and grabbed hold of his Duel Disk. Shocked, Yugi tried to pull away, but when he did, a spell card fired from his Duel Disk instead.

Grabbing hold of the card, Jaden smiled and showed it. "Gee, thanks Yugi, it's Pot of Greed. Now it activates, letting me draw a few more cards."

Picking up two more cards, Jaden smiled once more, exclaiming "Sweetness! I play one of my personal favs, the spell Cross Change. With this, I can send Burstinatrix back to my deck and special summon a Neo-Spacian with the same level in her place. So give a big welcome to Neo-Spacian Grand Mole (900/300)!"

Slowly vanishing from the field, the female warrior stood up and nodded back to Jaden, who returned the nod. In an instant, she vanished, but all didn't stay calm. Appearing in her place was a light orange mole like creature with drill like shoulder pads and sharp clawed hands and feet.

"Next, I summon Neo-Spacian Flare Scarab (500/500)!"

Rising up onto the field in a cylinder of fire was a bug like warrior. With the flames dying, it became apparent he had wings on his back, covered by a thick hide, a chiseled body, a helmet that appeared to be like a horned beetle, and a human like face that extended to his neck.

"Time for some fusion action, so Neos, Flare Scarab, and Grand Mole, combine!"

Each of the three nodded to one another and the white warrior instantly leapt into the air with the pair flanking him on each side. The two on each side of the warrior soon began to move closer, forming a bright light with lots of flames coming out. Once the light and the flames died down, a new warrior appeared in the place of the three. The warrior wore thick olive armor on his body, had a set of bug like wings on his back, a molten left hand and a mole like right hand, the bug warrior's head, and had a flaming aura surrounding his body.

"Meet my newest Elemental Hero, Elemental Hero Magma Neos (3000/2500)! And he has some sweet effects. He gains 400 attack points per a card on the field to start with. Since you have two and I have just the one, that means he gains 1200, but I'll throw down a face down, making him gain 1600 instead (3000 400 4 4600/2500)."

The large warrior's aura instantly began to grow larger, increasing the heat all around the field.

"Magma Neos, take down Dark Magician with Meteor Mash!"

Leaping into the air, the large warrior pulled back his left fist, which became engulfed in flames. Instantly, the warrior began flying towards the purple robed mage, who seemed a bit afraid.

"Not this time Jaden! I play Turn Jump! This spell let's us skip the Battle Phase and jump three turns into the future, meaning your warrior's attack was pointless." Yugi declared.

Softly growling, Jaden watched as a time wave hit his warrior, instantly stopping him. The warrior then began to glow and vanished instantly. The purple robed mage soon began glowing as well and instantly reverted back to his card image. The card immediately vanished back into Yugi's hand.

Shocked, Yugi asked "What just happened? Why did Dark Magician return to my hand!?"

Chuckling, Jaden replied "Kind of simple really. You see, Magma Neos can only stay on the field for one turn. When he returns to my Fusion Deck, his special ability goes off. Each card on the field is returned to their owner's hand, which is why my face down card returned also."

Lightly grumbling, Yugi remarked "I see. That creature was far stronger than I thought…"

"He is and then some." Jaden replied. "I'll throw down a face down and call it a turn." (Yugi 1800, Jaden 200)

Calmly drawing his next card, Yugi smiled and kindly said "Jaden, you've fought valiantly, but this is the end for you. I shall end this duel this turn with Dark Magician, once and for all."

"But you can't!" Jaden protested. "To summon Dark Magician back, you need two sacrifices, and you don't have a single monster out right now!"

Chuckling, Yugi nodded, replying "True, but who said I was going to play him that way. I activate the spell Dark Magic Curtain!"

Instantly materializing onto the field was a platform with a large red curtain, the top half of a skeleton with a red collar, and a pentagram design etched circle.

"To use this mighty spell card, I must pay half my life points, allowing me to call to the field once more my strongest and most loyal monster! Come out now my Dark Magician (2500/2100)!"

A black aura soon formed around Yugi and fed into the curtain creature. Once all the energy had been collected, the skeleton pulled open the curtain, allowing a figure to escape from it. The figure soon became clear and took form of the purple robed mage.

Lightly growling, Jaden muttered "Thought as much."

Smiling, Yugi kindly said "Good game Jaden, but all things must come to an end. Dark Magician, end this! Dark Magic Attack!"

Twirling his staff, the mage pointed it straight at Jaden and prepared to launch a green blast of magical energy.

"Not so fast Yugi! This duel isn't over yet! Remember, a duel isn't over till the last card is played, and I still have one left! Go Flute of Summoning Kuriboh!" Jaden declared.

The mage instantly stopped his attack, seemingly saying "Huh?"

"When this spell is played, I can special summon from my deck my old pal, Winged Kuriboh (300/200), and I'll play him in defense."

Appearing onto the field was a small brown hairball creature with large purple eyes, short green arms and feet with purple toenails, and on it's back were a pair of white wings. Once fully on the field, the small creature crossed his arms in order to defend and let out a small "Kree" sound.

Slightly smirking, Yugi commented "I should have guessed you weren't done yet." Shifting his mood once more, Yugi called out "Dark Magician, take Winged Kuriboh out now with Dark Magic Attack!"

Pointing at the small hairball creature, the mage released a sphere of dark green magical energy. The blast hit the creature, which made a small "kree" sound before vanishing.

"I end my move." (Yugi 900, Jaden 200)

Smiling, Jaden drew his next card and said "This duel has been a blast, but I'm going to take you down now! I activate the spell HERO Flash! To play it, I must remove a copy of the following four cards from my Graveyard. First, there is H – Heated Heart, next E – Emergency Call, then R – Righteous Justice, and finally O – Over Soul."

One by one, the four cards came out of Jaden's Graveyard Slot and into his waiting hands. Placing them into the removed from play slot, he smiled, saying "Thanks to doing that, I can now special summon one Normal Type Elemental Hero from my deck, and I pick Elemental Hero Neos (2500/2000)!"

Materializing above the field, the white warrior once more made his grand entrance. Landing onto the field, he took up his usual offensive stance, seemingly prepared to do battle once more.

"Check out the sweetest part of my spell. For this turn only, Neos can direct attack!"

"What!?" Yugi asked in shock.

Smiling even bigger, Jaden remarked "You heard me! Neos can direct attack thanks to HERO Flash. Neos, go and end this duel with Cosmic Crush!"

Leaping over the purple robed mage in a single stride, the white warrior pulled back his fist and began sending blue energy coursing through it. Coming down fast, the warrior unloaded his fist towards Yugi, only to come into contact with a brown hairball creature instead, causing a large explosion on impact.

"SAY WHAT!?" Jaden exclaimed.

Lightly chuckling, Yugi showed a card to Jaden and calmly explained. "When Neos attacked, I discarded this, my Kuriboh (300/200) to the Graveyard. By sending him, I can reduce the Battle Damage I'd receive from one attack to zero."

Sighing, Jaden remarked "Oh well, I end my turn." (Yugi 900, Jaden 200)

Looking at his Graveyard longingly, Yugi mumbled "Thank you Kuriboh. Without your help, I would have lost this duel just now."

Appearing in a barely visible form was the small brown hairball creature. It made a "kree" noise, as if responding to Yugi.

Looking up, Yugi drew his next card and frowned. "I pass this turn." (Yugi 900, Jaden 200)

Calmly drawing his next card, Jaden studied it for a moment before placing it in his Spell/Trap Slot. "I'll throw down this face down and end my turn." (Yugi 900, Jaden 200)

Quietly drawing, Yugi looked at his new card and smiled. "I play this, my Magic Formula spell! Thanks to this card, my Dark Magician gains 500 attack points (2500 500 3000/2100)!"

A spell book instantly materialized in front of the mage, who grabbed hold of it and began reading through it. After a moment, his whole body began glowing brightly, as the book vanished and his aura increased.

"Dark Magician, finish Neos and Jaden off with Dark Magic Attack!"

Launching himself into the air, the purple mage took aim with his staff. He fired a single blast of green magic energy straight at the white warrior, intending on finishing him off.

"I'm afraid that won't work Yugi! Go face down spell card, Burial from a Different Dimension! With this, I can transfer up to three monsters from my removed from play pile to my Graveyard, but I only have one in the pile."

Opening the slot with the single card, Jaden removed it and placed it onto his Graveyard Slot, which instantly sucked the card in.

"Next, I remove from my Graveyard the monster I just placed in it, my Necro Guardna (600/1300) in order to negate your attack!"

The same warrior dressed in grey, maroon, and black armor that had defended the white warrior earlier in the duel reappeared onto the field in front of the white warrior once more. The blast slammed into the grey armored warrior, who took it head on. Immediately, the blast dissipated, with the grey armored warrior vanishing as well.

Growling with frustration, Yugi mumbled "I end my turn." (Yugi 900, Jaden 200)

Letting out a sigh of relief, Jaden looked at Yugi's field. "_Hmm, only Dark Magician out still, plus he has an equip card. Man, I need to find a way to fortify Neos to take on Dark Magician. Well, here goes something!_"

Drawing without hesitation, Jaden examined the new card and smirked. "Sweet! I activate a field spell, one that is out of this world! Go Neo Space!"

Turning his Duel Disk vertical, Jaden tapped the end of his Duel Disk, causing a slot to shoot out. Placing the card into the slot, the slot shut and his Duel Disk began to lightly glow with rainbow energy. Almost instantly, the field became a multicolored area that surrounded the pair.

"In here, Neos and his other forms gain 500 attack points (2500 500 3000/2000)." Jaden confidently stated.

Immediately, the white warrior glowed with a multicolored energy and took up a fighting pose once more, seemingly daring the purple robed mage to attack him.

"That's it for me. Your go now." (Yugi 900, Jaden 200)

Lightly sighing, Yugi drew his next card, saying "This duel seems like it will never end."

"Is that a bad thing?" Jaden asked with a small smile.

Chuckling, Yugi shook his head, saying "No, it's not. I haven't had a duel as challenging as this one for quite a while. You're an excellent duelist Jaden, but I'm not ready to quit yet."

Smiling back, Jaden remarked "You're the best I've seen Yugi, but like you, I'm not ready to throw in the towel. So come on, show me what you got!"

Examining the card in his hand, Yugi replied "Very well, I shall lay this face down. Your move." (Yugi 900, Jaden 200)

Drawing, Jaden examined the new card and smiled great big. "Very sweet card! Check it out, I summon Chrysalis Chicky (600/400)!"

Emerging instantly onto the field was a small pink see-through bubble with a small young red bird with blue eyes inside of it.

"Whenever Neo Space is out, I can instantly evolve this little guy into his adult form, so good bye Chrysalis Chicky and hello Neo-Spacian Air Hummingbird (800/600)!"

The small pink bubble instantly began to glow brightly white energy. The light was so bright that eventually it became blinding. After nearly a minute, the light died down to reveal a large red bird warrior with white wings on his back. He had a long yellow beak mouth, with a muscular physique.

"Hummingbird, do your thing! Honey suck!"

Launching forward, the bird headed straight for Yugi. A single pink flower then blossomed above his head, which drew the attention of the bird warrior. The warrior instantly began to feed on the flower and finally retreated to Jaden's field.

"What did he just do?" Yugi asked with great curiosity.

Chuckling, Jaden remarked "He just drank up some honey. You see, he has the special ability to give me 500 life points per a card in your hand."

"I see. Interesting." Yugi replied calmly.

"Very, since my life points are close to yours." Jaden casually said. Pointing at the two monsters, he added "Now, Air Hummingbird and Neos, merge together to create Elemental Hero Air Neos (2500/2000)!"

Both the white warrior and the red bird warrior leapt into the air together. Slowly, the pair moved closer together till the two blended, forming a bright light. From the light came a new red warrior with white wings. His hands had brown like gloves that ran up to nearly his elbows, and on his feet were brown like boots.

"Check this out, first of all, Air Neos gains 500 attack points thanks to my field spell (2500 500 3000/2000). Next, his special effect kicks in. If my life points are lower than your own, then the difference in our points is added to Air Neos's attack points (3000 200 3200/2000)!"

Glowing with green energy, the powerful red warrior spread his wings, dissipating the immense energy he had collected.

"No way! It's stronger than Dark Magician!" Yugi nervously exclaimed.

Smiling, Jaden cried out "That's right, he is! Air Neos, show Dark Magician what you've got with Swooping Crush!"

Lifting off into the air with the power of his mighty white wings, the red warrior flew high into the sky and turned downwards into a dive bomb. Pulling back his right hand, the red warrior prepared to deliver the blow to the mage, who only stood there in complete shock with wide eyes.

Reacting quickly, Yugi called out "I don't think so, go trap! Soul Shield!"

Instantly appearing around the purple robed mage was a purple barrier. The red warrior struck it hard with his right fist, making sparks of purple energy come flaring off of the barrier. After a minute of grinding away on the barrier, the red warrior finally retreated from the battle to Jaden's field.

"Why didn't Neos's attack go through?" Jaden asked in complete confusion.

Lightly chuckling, Yugi was quick to explain. "Whenever Soul Shield is activated, by paying half my life points, I can negate your attack and end the Battle Phase. That also means your warrior loses his bonus points (3200 – 200 3000/2000)."

Sighing heavily, Jaden dejectedly said "Very well, I end." (Yugi 450, Jaden 700)

Picking up a new card, Yugi looked it over before placing it in a Spell/Trap Slot. "I'll place this face down and end." (Yugi 450, Jaden 700)

Quickly drawing, Jaden smirked. "I play the spell Hope of Fifth! Thanks to this spell, I take five Elemental Heroes that are just chilling out in my Graveyard and place them in my deck. Next I shuffle and draw two cards. Alright, I'll send Elemental Heroes Burstinatrix, Clayman, Sparkman, Bubbleman, and Bladedge all back."

Slowly, all five cards were pushed out of Jaden's Graveyard Slot till all were in a pile. Picking up the pile, he shuffled his them back into this deck and replaced his deck into it's place. Drawing two more cards, he smiled once more.

"Time to end this! Go Fusion Decimation! This sweet spell card let's me first send a Polymerization card from my hand to the Grave. Next, I pick a Fusion monster from my deck to send to the Graveyard. My pick is this, Elemental Hero Aqua Neos. Now I can special summon from my deck one of the two monsters that form Aqua Neos, and I think you know which one I want. Come on out Elemental Hero Neos (2500 500 3000/2000)!"

Materializing onto the field, the white warrior took up an offensive stance and gave a cold glare towards the purple robed mage.

"Let's end this guys! Air Neos, attack Dark Magician with Swooping Crush!"

"But they're points are even! They'll both be destroyed!" Yugi protested.

Nodding sadly, Jaden remarked "Yeah, that's true, but to win this duel, it has to be this way. Go for it Air Neos!"

Launching into the sky, the red warrior climbed greatly in altitude before finally dive bombing the purple robed mage. The purple robed mage released a blast of green magical energy, scoring a hit, but only to have the warrior continue on and punch him roughly, making both the mage and the warrior explode upon impact.

"Let's end it Neos! Attack with Cosmic Crush!"

Rushing forward at blinding speed, the white warrior pulled back his right fist and began sending waves of blue energy into it. Winding up for the delivery, the warrior stared at Yugi, preparing to launch his attack.

Smirking, Yugi turned his hand towards his face down, saying "I'm not quite beat yet. I play my trap, Dark Magic Retribution! Thanks to this trap, I can special summon a Spellcaster Type monster from my Graveyard to the field. I know the perfect one, so rise up once more Dark Magician (2500/2100) in defense mode!"

Reappearing onto the field in a kneeling stance, the purple robed mage took up a defensive stance in front of Yugi.

Growling, Jaden called out "Take him down Neos!"

Unloading his fist into the purple robed mage, the white warrior grinded it in till finally the mage exploded.

"Darn, I thought I had you this time." Jaden commented.

Letting out a sigh, Yugi smiled and replied "You almost did. If not for that trap, I'd have lost."

Sighing also, Jaden muttered "Yeah, and this duel would be over. Oh well, I guess we'll carry on. Unfortunately, due to my Fusion Decimation card, Neos has to go to the Graveyard now."

In an instant, the white warrior vanished and Jaden placed the card within his Graveyard Slot. "I'll call it a turn at that." (Yugi 200, Jaden 700)

Calmly drawing, Yugi glanced at the card before saying "I place a card face down and end my turn." (Yugi 200, Jaden 700)

Mirroring Yugi's move, Jaden calmly said "I'll have to just throw down a face down myself and just chill." (Yugi 200, Jaden 700)

Picking up his new card, Yugi smiled. "Alright, I summon my old pal Marshmallon (300/500)."

Appearing onto the field was a pink creature that appeared to be in the shape of a pair with two darker pink cheeks. Opening his mouth, the small creature revealed several sharp fangs that could hurt someone.

"Marshmallon, attack Jaden directly!"

Launching forward, the creature let out a small battle cry with his teeth bared.

Smiling, Jaden remarked "As cute as that thing is, I don't think so. Go trap, Call of the Haunted! With this, I can special summon Elemental Hero Neos (2500/2000) from my Graveyard."

"Not quite Jaden, I play my trap, Dust Tornado! Now your trap is destroyed, meaning Neos stays in the Graveyard!" Yugi called out.

A brown tornado instantly smashed through Jaden's revealed trap card, instantly shattering it into millions of pieces. The small pink creature continued on and grabbed hold of Jaden's right arm with a big bite.

"YEOW!!!" Jaden screamed out as he tried to shake the monster off. It finally came off and instantly went back to Yugi's field.

"I'll call it a turn at that." (Yugi 200, Jaden 400)

Smiling, Jaden drew his next card and lightly chuckled. Hearing it, Yugi asked "What is so funny?"

Still smiling, Jaden remarked "The card I just drew, it'll end this duel, and here I was having so much fun."

"Can you now? Why don't you show me then." Yugi boasted.

Lightly chuckling, Jaden remarked "Well, you asked for it. I play a new field spell, one a friend of mine made for me! Sorry Neo Space, you're out of here and Skyscraper II – Hero City is in!"

Placing the card into his field spell slot, Jaden smiled as the multicolored landscape vanished, only to be replaced by several large skyscraper buildings.

"Thanks to this field spell, once a turn, I can special summon an Elemental Hero back from the Graveyard. And who better to end this duel than Elemental Hero Neos (2500/2000)!"

Appearing on top of the tallest skyscraper was the white warrior. He leapt from the building and onto the ground in front of Jaden, taking up once more his fighting stance.

"Neos, end this duel by attacking Marshmallon with Cosmic Crush!"

Launching forward at unbelievable speed, the white warrior vanished for nearly a moment before reappearing with his fist lodged into the pink creature, which exploded upon impact.

The remainder of Yugi's life points quickly dwindled to zero, and each Duel Disk powered down, causing the massive city to vanish once more.

"And that's game, and a sweet one at that!" Jaden remarked.


	82. Chapter 82: Grand Return

**Hey everybody! (/Hears group yell back "Hi Doctor Nick!"\) Well, the last few days haven't been too bad. Hmm, I was a bit frustrated Wednesday night I suppose due that I didn't win a duel in playing 2 sets. It's the first time in a very long time that I lost that many times in a row. I partially blame myself though. I got frustrated and lost my concentration, thus allowing me to play sloppy. Plus, the music I was listening two kind of made me not feel energized for the duel, but that's just one of my stupid things I guess. Not to mention, my mate bragged a bit in our second set on the first round. That really irritated me and made me even madder, making me that much sloppier. Finally, my deck wasn't very well shuffled. I drew the same cards each duel, and none were helpful, lol. Still, it was a learning curve. Oh well, I'll figure it out, I guess, lol. Anyways, in the meantime, I did decide to start buying some cards for collection purposes. Don't know why, but I am, lol.**

**Story wise, things are moving along. I finally finished a part of **_**Another**_** that I couldn't do from work. Also, I've come up with new ideas for **_**MtM**_**, and talked with ardee on some stuff for it. We're moving along, and with any luck, should be able to have something done before too much longer.**

**Last time, Jaden finished off the duel and won, defeating the nearly undefeatable Yugi. Now the question is, what next?**

**Wow, the reviews just keep on coming in. Thank you all for them. I still think this story has a chance to out due **_**ToP**_** in number of reviews. If it doesn't, I won't mind, but thanks to everyone who keeps reviewing, that chance is very much alive. I truly thank you all for it.**

**Now then, let's get to those reviews!**

**Knives91: Yep, Jaden beat Yugi, although he didn't really pwn him, lol. Thanks for the review.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Lol, yeah, it did seem that the duel would go on forever, but I figured it needed to end there. HERO Flash is actually used correctly (saw a GX episode where Jaden pulled that same move). It doesn't limit the monster level, it only says Normal Monster, meaning it could be any of the Normal Type Elemental Heroes, including good old Neos. And yes, it's true, Yugi could have maybe won if he had set Marshmellon face down and done a 1000 in direct damage to Jaden, but it was late in the duel. He took a chance, and the chance backfired. Thanks for the review!**

**Raymond: Thanks. Hmm, when did the fluctuation happen with his life point meter? I'll have to examine it I suppose, once I get some time, lol. Thank you for your review.**

**Nathan: LOL! Yes, Jaden is somewhat related to Illidan, only he is his descendant, lol. Yep, the finale finally happened, and true, Yugi probably should have won, but like I said with ULM above, Yugi just took a chance to try and wipe Jaden out. Actually, Jaden did have a chance to set Flute of Summoning Kuriboh. It was his Main Phase 2 when he set it. Magma Neos had returned prior due to Yugi's Turn Jump card. As for Yugi leaving himself wide open, he did and didn't. It was late game, remember. If you were growing more and more desperate to end the duel, wouldn't you try anything you could? Thanks for the review!**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Yep, the duel ended with a bang, thus putting it to rest. Thanks for the review.**

**JudaiAsuka-fan: Lol, thanks. Heh, thanks about how I write duels. I try to do lots of descriptions so that anyone who hasn't played the game may actually understand what the card looks like. It gets complicated and difficult sometimes, but it's not too bad I suppose. Thanks for the review!**

**DuelistBlake1852: LOL! Poor Yami is still stuck in the ground. Sorry about your idol losing. He just had to… Uh, if you try to throttle me, you may pull back a bloody stump. (/Cracks claws and demonstrates by slashing a bottle of hair gel in half.\) Get the point? Yeah, I know, it sucks that Yugi lost, but in a way, I'm kind of proving a point that the next generation of duelists can keep up, if not surpass, the older generation of duelists. I thought about making him set Marshmellon, but eh, I wanted Jaden to win to prove the above point. Very true, I did mess up Dark Magic Curtain when I looked back on it again. That's my fault, but oh well, lol. Cool that you've got 15 chapters out. If I ever get a chance, I'll try to read it. I have so much stuff to do currently that it's hard to read anyone's fics. I spend a lot of time writing on my stuff, then reading through some, then writing some more, and finding time to do other stuff, lol. Thanks for the review!**

**sirbj: Yep, Jaden came out on top and achieved his goal. Heh, a Zane vs. Kaiba duel would be nice. Lol, the toons are fun to write about. Ah, cool that I didn't really miss you. Lol, I had no idea if I had or not. I'm horrible at remembering names, heh. Thanks for the review!**

**Alrighty guys, that's it for today. Thank you everyone for your continuous reviews. Your comments are rather helpful, and I am glad when someone points out a mistake, or has a question about how I played some cards. Sometimes to make the story work, I have to bend the rules on cards, but I try to keep true to the OCG rules while occasionally using the anime's effects, lol.**

**Thank you everyone again for your reviews. I'll be back Monday with yet another chapter, so till then, I hope you enjoy the chapter! Later!**

**Chapter 82**

Smiling, Yugi stepped forward and offered Jaden his hand, saying "Well played Jaden. That was an excellent duel. I can see you are truly a talented duelist."

Rubbing the back of his head, Jaden sheepishly replied "Thanks. You're an awesome duelist too Yugi. I only dreamed about how good you were, but you were far better."

"Thank you Jaden." Yugi kindly remarked. Smiling, he added "You know, only a few duelists have ever beaten me. One other resides on this island other than yourself."

Frowning, Jaden asked "Wait, who is the other?"

"You know him Jaden. After all, you are his descendant." Yugi divulged.

Eyes growing large as pie plates, Jaden exclaimed in complete shock "You mean Illidan beat you too!?"

Nodding, Yugi kindly said "Yes, he did. Earlier today, he beat me in a duel, and long ago he defeated me. He has beaten both me and Yami, even when the two of us were still in one body. He is truly a gifted duelist. I can see it runs in the family."

"I see." Jaden quietly remarked. Smiling great big, he added "I'm going to have to duel him then! I wanna see how strong I truly am!"

Chuckling, Yugi replied "I'm sure he'd love that. For now though, we should get you home. We're only on the beach on the opposite side of the Duel Academy Island, so if you wish to go back alone, you can follow the beach."

Thinking for a moment, Jaden finally said "It's all good. I can make it on my own. After all, you need to get home and see your family. They miss you like crazy."

"Very true." Yugi mumbled. Looking up at the sky, he softly smiled, saying "I've been away from them for far too long."

Patting Yugi on the shoulder, Jaden said "I'm sure you'll make it up to them."

Smiling once more, Yugi turned to Jaden and extended his hand. Putting on a smile as well, Jaden took hold and the two shook.

"Farewell Jaden. I'm sure we'll meet again." Yugi warmly said.

"I know we will." Jaden remarked.

Turning and walking away towards his boat, Yugi mentally said "_That boy, he is something truly special. I know one day, he will be the one to end all of this darkness._"

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Standing in front of the Slifer Red Dorm, all of the students showed up for the small ceremony to remember Jaden. Candles were lit and surrounding a picture of him. Many of the students had gloomy looks. Some were crying, while others had looks that showed they were brokenhearted over the whole thing.

At the front of the crowd, Illidan and Marie both stood staring at the picture of Jaden. Marie held Illidan's hand, trying hard to help him maintain his calmness.

Glancing at him, Marie saw the brokenness and inner blame for what had happened. "_He blames himself for this, I know he does._"

Staring at the picture of Jaden's picture, Illidan struggled within his mind over self loathing. "_If only I had been stronger... I could have stopped this from happening, and Jaden wouldn't have had to sacrifice himself. Why, why did you do this Jaden!?_"

Closing his eyes, Illidan fell to his hands and knees. Tears slowly trickled down his cheeks. In a sobbing whisper, he said "Jaden… Please forgive me for being too weak to save you."

Looking down at Illidan, Marie felt her own heart breaking while tears streamed down her own face. Crouching down, she embraced him from behind, whispering "It's alright love. You did all you could."

"I'm such a fool Marie. I thought I could handle Legato on my own, but I only caused Jaden's own demise! He gave everything he had to save everyone, but he didn't deserve to lose it all! It should have been me that paid this debt, not him!" Illidan angrily muttered lowly.

Squeezing Illidan tighter, Marie harshly replied "NO! Jaden did what he thought he had to do. If not for him, you wouldn't ever get to know your child. Let it go Illidan. Jaden gave up his dreams selflessly and willingly sacrificed everything because he loved us all."

Looking up from the ground at those words, Illidan sniffled and slightly nodded. Seeing this, Marie sadly smiled, saying "He wouldn't want you to suffer Illidan. Jaden did the only thing he knew that could fix things. I have a feeling he knew I couldn't carry on through life alone, even with our child. Because of his sacrifice, he has given us all a chance to live on."

"I know…" Illidan mumbled. "I just wish… I wish he wasn't gone."

Sadly smiling, Marie relaxed her embrace and laid her head on Illidan's back. "I know. I miss him dearly too, but remember what your father told you long ago. Like the phoenix, Jaden is still here. He lives within both of our hearts and memories, and that no one can take away."

Lightly sighing, Illidan wiped his tears away and slowly began to stand up, causing Marie to stand up as well. Turning to face her, Illidan embraced her, mumbling "Thank you."

Breaking the embrace, she nodded, saying "That's why I'm here. For better or worse, remember?"

Softly chuckling, Illidan nodded. "Yes, I remember."

Both turned back to the picture and each sadly sighed. "Things will be quieter without him." Illidan mumbled.

"Hey, what's going on guys?" a voice from the side called out.

Turning to identify the voice, the entire crowd all gasped, with both Illidan and Marie's eyes widening. "No way…" each muttered lowly.

Standing to the side was Jaden with a curious look on his face. "What's up with all the candles, and why is my picture in the middle?"

Breaking into a run, Illidan hugged Jaden, exclaiming "You're really alive!"

Getting free from Illidan's embrace, Jaden smiled. "Yeah, shouldn't I be?"

"But… I thought you sacrificed yourself to the Shadow Realm to free us all!" Illidan was quick to reply.

Putting his right index finger under his chin, Jaden scratched his chin for a moment before saying "Well, I did, sort of. I made a deal with the Sacred Beasts and Egyptian Gods to release everyone. My life for everyone else. I was ready to go when a friend of yours saved me. His name was…"

Frowning, Jaden finally said "Um… Now what was it... Yomi, Yumi, Yamo…"

"Yami?" Illidan guessed.

"That's it! Anyways, right before the Shadows were about to devour me, he stepped in and saved me. He then pulled me back into the world and I met Yugi Moto!"

Smiling, Illidan mumbled in his mind "_Yami, thank you._"

Continuing on, Jaden added "Me and Yugi dueled, and it was a sweet duel. Once we wrapped up, he told me I was just on the opposite side of the island, and that I could follow the beach back. So I did, and here I am. Now, what's going on?"

Chuckling, Illidan kindly said "This was a memorial service for you. We all thought you were dead."

"Oh…" Jaden whispered. Rubbing the back of his head, he sheepishly said "Well, I'm alive and well now."

Nearly all of the crowd did an anime fall over at the words.

Growling loudly, Chazz walked up to Jaden and jabbed a finger into his chest. "You Slacker, I thought you were dead! You made me cry for nothing!" he uttered in anger with tear stains still on his face.

"I'm sorry Chazz. I didn't know you cared so much." Jaden apologetically said.

"It's not that I cared, it's just I was sad I'd never get to duel you again, that's all!" Chazz quickly remarked. Turning away from Jaden, he began walking away, but let a small smile slip over his face.

"Jaden!" cried a voice. Without warning, Jaden was embraced tightly by a sobbing Alexis.

"I… I thought you were gone forever!" she sobbed out.

Softly smiling, Jaden patted her back and began rubbing small circles. "There, there Alexis, it's alright. I'm back." he sympathetically said.

Looking up at him with puffy eyes, she grabbed a fist full of his uniform and said "Please, don't ever do that again. I… I don't want to lose you again!"

Embracing her back, Jaden warmly said "Don't worry, I won't leave you. I promise."

Releasing his embrace, he then lifted her chin to have her look him in the face. Softly smiling, he stared deeply into her light brown eyes. "I'm sorry I made you worry." he softly said.

The last of her tears spilled out as she laid her head back onto Jaden's chest. "Welcome back." she murmured.

Finally, she moved back and out of the way as both Syrus and Hasselberry both tackled Jaden in a group hug.

"Serge, you did it!" Hasselberry declared.

"Jaden, we knew you'd save us!" Syrus added.

Lightly chuckling, Jaden remarked "Guys, I'm glad to see you're both back!"

Smiling as the students crowded around Jaden, Illidan silently thanked Yami. "_Thank you so much my friend._"

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nearly a week after the school had returned to normal, top students started being found in unconscious states once more. It was immediately decided that only one person could be behind it since he was unaccounted for.

Arriving at the Chancellor's office, Illidan and Marie entered to find him seated at his desk with his head in his hands.

"Chancellor?" Illidan asked, unsure if they had come at a bad time.

Looking up, the Chancellor weakly smiled, saying "Good, you came. Sit down."

Nodding, the pair took a seat each and settled.

"You wished to see us?" Illidan asked.

"Yes, I did. It's about the situation." the Chancellor began. "Do you have any leads on who is behind these mysterious attacks?"

Lightly sighing, Illidan nodded, responding with "Yes, we do. I think you know who it is too."

"I was afraid you'd say that." the Chancellor wearily said. "I had hoped that maybe it wasn't Zane, but now I can see it is."

Standing up from his desk and turning to face the window, the Chancellor slowly said "When Zane was younger, I trained him at a small hidden away school. He was my best student and learned about respecting an opponent and his cards."

"He even mimicked me, making me even more proud of him." the Chancellor added a moment later. "Still, he should know better than to do this to others."

"I understand your anger and sadness towards this situation." Illidan calmly said. "I think whatever Legato did to him changed him. I doubt Legato just 'talked' to Zane. I'd say he did something to him, like used his Shadow Powers on him or something."

"We'll be able to return Zane to the way he was, but we have to find him and help him first." Marie added, trying to sympathize with the Chancellor.

"Yes, I wish to return him to his original self, if it still exists." the Chancellor responded after a moment. Turning back around and sitting back down, he said "In the meantime, I wish to know something. You mentioned in your report Illidan that his deck was different, that he had new monsters. What were they?"

Thinking for a moment, Illidan finally said "They had the name Cyberdark in their names."

Slightly gasping, the Chancellor's brow deeply furrowed. "This could be trouble then."

"How so?" Marie asked curiously.

Lightly sighing, the Chancellor slowly said "The cards you just told me about Illidan are from a deck known as the Underworld Deck. It was sealed away at the hidden school where I taught Zane. At that same school, I originally gave Zane his Cyber End Dragon due that the two had connected, thus I thought the card would keep him safe."

Pausing for a moment, the Chancellor added "You see, the Underworld Deck in essence is the yin to the yang of Zane's original deck."

Frowning, Marie asked "What do you mean yin to the yang of his deck?"

"His original deck was pure and light, whereas his new deck, the Underworld one, is one of darkness and evil." Chancellor Shepherd explained.

"Thus making the darkness in his heart stronger." Illidan concluded.

Nodding, the Chancellor replied "Exactly. The Underworld Deck was sealed away not due to it's strength, but due to the power it had over a person's heart. I knew if I gave Zane the Cyber End Dragon, his heart would be guarded, plus he had such a kind personality then. Over time though, he did grow colder and more distant, but the kindness was still there."

Stopping for a moment, the Chancellor's facial expression turned to one of worry. "Now with the Underworld Deck, I fear that the purity and kindness within his heart will completely be engulfed by the darkness."

The room went silent for a moment before Marie said "We promise to find him and fix this. Neither of us will let Zane continue this tirade against the students."

"Who said we?" Illidan asked with a glance towards Marie.

Ignoring it, Marie added "I promise, we'll find a way to bring the old Zane back from the darkness if it's possible."

"Please, do try." the Chancellor downheartedly said.

"We'll do our best sir." Illidan said as he stood.

Marie stood as well and the pair bowed out. Once outside, Illidan heavily sighed, asking "Now what is this about we?"

"It implies both of us. You know, as in two people." Marie calmly said.

"Marie, you aren't going to help me on this one."

Stopping dead in her tracks, Marie let out a strangled growl and glared at Illidan, yelling out "Why not!?"

"You're in no condition to be helping me find Zane." Illidan calmly stated without turning to face her.

"Illidan, for crying out loud, I'm pregnant, not injured!" she exclaimed with great anger rising in her voice.

Sighing, Illidan turned towards her and seriously said "True, but I don't want you hurt by Zane. He's seriously dangerous right now, and he's already hurt so many students. I won't risk you getting hurt or losing your soul."

"I realize that Illidan, but I care about Zane just as much as you do. He's our friend and colleague, and I can't standby and do nothing. I am going to help, whether you want me to or not!" she defiantly shouted.

Lowly growling, Illidan spat back "Marie, this isn't the time for you to be stubborn! I love you dearly, but I won't lose you to Zane due to that stubbornness!"

Glaring at Illidan, Marie fired back "It's not stubbornness or pride Illidan! It's the fact that he's our friend and needs our help! I'd do anything to help him, and I won't let you stop me!"

Breathing hard, Illidan angrily said "You are so stubborn! Can't you see I want to protect you!?"

Calming down a bit, Marie let out a long sigh and slowly said "I know you do, but I can't and won't let Zane stay in darkness. He needs both of us to help him. Please, try to understand that I must help."

Turning away to face the direction towards the dorm, Illidan growled out "Marie, I won't let you help. It's far too dangerous."

With a bit of sorrow in his voice, he added "I'm sorry."

That said, he slowly walked away, leaving Marie alone. Looking at the ground, she sighed. "_Why must you always do this to me!?_"

After a few moments, she heard something and glanced around. She heard small explosions, followed by screams of pain. "Sounds like a duel." she lowly murmured with concern.

Deciding to take a chance, she began walking in the direction of the noise, hoping to find out what she was hearing.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

After walking into the woods for nearly twenty minutes, Marie finally found the duel and gasped in shock. Before her was Syrus and Zane locked in a Shadow Game.

Rushing faster towards the duel, she heard Zane coldly say "It's been fun little brother, but this duel is over. I play the spell Power Bond, allowing me to form my Cyberdark Dragon (1000/1000)."

On the field, three strange looking creatures that were all made of a dark toned metal began to swirl together. The swirling soon ended and a powerful combination of the three dragons appeared onto the field.

"Now the fun begins, because Power Bond doubles my Cyberdark Dragon's attack points (1000 2 2000/1000)."

The dark dragon instantly roared as it's body glowed with a dark aura, thus increasing it's strength.

"Time for more fun, because I can equip any Dragon Type monster from my Graveyard, but first, I play my trap. I activate Rebirth Judgment, which lets me transform every card in my Graveyard into a Dragon Type monster. Since every card in my Graveyard is now a Dragon, I equip my Cyber End Dragon (4000/2800) to Cyberdark Dragon (2000 4000 6000/1000)!"

A large silver machine dragon with three heads and massive wings instantly appeared onto the field with a mighty roar. The large black metal dragon then surrounded it with wires and it's claw like arms and began draining the large silver dragon's strength. With a mighty roar, the black metal dragon spread it's wings and glared down at Syrus.

"And for the more pain, my dragon's final effect kicks in. He gains 100 attack points per a card in my Graveyard. By my last count, I had forty cards in the Graveyard, meaning 4000 bonus attack points (6000 4000 10000/1000). Game over little brother. Cyberdark Dragon, end this by striking his rust bucket with Darkness Strident Blaze!"

Roaring loudly, the black metal dragon launched a stream of black energy straight for the large machine warrior that stood in front of Syrus, who only stared in shock at the oncoming blast. The blast bore straight through the machine and struck Syrus with tremendous force, making him scream out in pain as he was thrown into the barrier that surrounded the duel. Upon being slammed against the barrier, Syrus screamed even louder than before. After a few minutes, he finally slid off of the barrier and struck the ground with a large thud.

"SYRUS!" Marie screamed out while still running towards him. She finally managed to make it to him just as the barrier had faded and the monster images. Gently, she cradled him in her arms, trying hard to sense if his soul was left, but immediately found it gone.

"Foolish little brother, you were a waste of my time." Zane coldly stated.

Growling loudly, Marie glared up at Zane and set Syrus down. Standing up, she yelled "HOW COULD YOU ZANE!? Syrus worshiped you, but you just destroyed him and took his soul! Haven't you any decency left in you!?"

Smirking darkly, Zane calmly said "No, I don't. It all left when I sent that sniveling fool's soul out of this body."

"What!?" Marie asked in shock. "If you're not Zane, then who are you!?"

Sneering evilly, he remarked "What, has the pharaoh's whore already forgotten me?"

Immediately anger washed over Marie's face as she said "Zell! I should have known that you were still alive! How, how did you survive!? Illidan told me Legato got rid of you."

Darkly chuckling, Zane calmly said "He did, but he seemed to have forgotten about Zane. You see, when this loser lost, Legato tried to talk him into joining. Even after the most convincing story I've ever heard told, Zane failed to agree to help Legato. His loyalty for his friends was far stronger than I thought possible."

Smirking, Zane added "But that didn't stop Legato's plans. He transferred a portion of my soul into Zane, giving me control of him. When I lost, it was true, I lost that portion of my soul in the Shadow Game with Illidan, but Zane lost all of his soul. Legato eventually sent the remainder of my soul to the Shadow Realm too, but I had other plans. I gathered up my soul, and when Zane's was released back into his body, I went back into it also, except with my whole soul."

Laughing evilly, he said "I easily overpowered that weak minded fool and took possession of his body. Now I am the one in control, and will take what is rightfully mine. I shall control this world and do what should have been done ages ago, which is rule rightfully like Shando wanted me to!"

"You're insane." Marie calmly stated. "But I won't let you get away with this. You may have taken Zane's body, but don't get too comfortable."

Pulling Syrus's deck out of his Duel Disk, she sat it in one of his hands and then took his Duel Disk off. She quickly strapped it on and pulled her own deck out and placed it in the deck slot.

"I'm going to kick you out of his body myself. We have a score to settle from our pasts and the present, so come and get some of this!" she boldly challenged.

Laughing manically, Zane doubled over while holding his stomach, saying "You're kidding me! You, the pathetic girl who couldn't protect herself from me, wishes to fight me? This is rich!"

"Afraid to face me when I'm not poisoned?" Marie taunted.

Lightly growling with a touch of anger, Zane quickly shot back "Very well, I'll accept your challenge."

"Good, because when I beat you, you'll leave Zane's body and free everyone's soul that you took from the Shadow Realm." Marie stated.

Sneering, Zane remarked "Very well, but when I win, you will lose all of your memories and become my obedient servant girl. After all, with this younger, more tone body, I shall make you into a true sex slave."

"I wouldn't bet on it." Marie heatedly replied.

"Touch a nerve my dear?" Zane goaded.

Calming herself, Marie smirked, saying "Not at all. Shall we begin?"

"Let's."

Both activated their Duel Disks, which instantly pushed out the bar and shot out the blade like structure. Each drew five cards from their decks and cried out simultaneously "Game on!"


	83. Chapter 83: Darkness vs Light, Pt 1

**Hello again everyone! Well, I had a decent weekend I suppose. Nothing really happened, other than I wrote and played video games, spent time with my mate (which I'm sure no one wants to hear about, lol), and did nothing really of importance, lol. It did get rather cold yesterday and this morning. Yesterday, it was 6 degrees when I woke up and went to church, and only 2 this morning when I got up. Heh, I felt the cold from our bedroom this morning once my mate left for work, which really sucked. I hate laying in bed and feeling cold. I know, that's kind of dumb, but it's the truth. You can't sleep very well if it happens.**

**Writing wise, I did get a good bit done on **_**Another **_**this weekend. I should have enough to begin posting on the second of February (special day is why the second, hehe). As for **_**MtM**_**, I have plans to work on it possibly today or tomorrow, pending on how I feel. I have plenty on it to work on, so I may begin today. Just depends, lol.**

**Last time around, Jaden returned and crashed his own funeral, thus having everyone that cared for him grateful that he was alive. Not long afterwards, Chancellor Shepherd met with Illidan and Marie to discuss what to do about the new attacks, which pointed to Zane. After the meeting, Illidan demanded Marie not help in the search for Zane, infuriating Marie that he was being unfair about it. Unwilling to allow his wife's welfare become a factor for Zane to target, Illidan walked over, leaving a fuming Marie. She soon enough heard a duel and investigated, only to find Zane and Syrus battling, with Syrus losing his soul in the end. Fueled with anger due that she found out the perpetrator is none other than Zell, who has commandeered Zane's body by force, Marie has challenged Zell to a duel. Can Marie defeat the man that has put her life in jeopardy twice, or will she fall at his hands once more?**

**Alright, moving on, time for the reviews!**

**x-knight20: Thank you. Yep, that snake Zell has targeted Marie, once again, lol. Hopefully she'll kick his butt this time around, now that she's not poisoned, hehe. LOL! Nice banner, hehe. Thanks for the review!**

**DuelistBlake1852: So very true! Illidan for sure won't be happy to hear that his pregnant wife is taking on psycho Zell in a Shadow Game. Lol, yeah, maybe she'll kick Zell's body snatching butt! LOL! Welcome back Yami. Thanks about the chapter. Yeah, I only made Yugi lose to Jaden to prove that the next generation is strong, much like the older one, and that they can do what is necessary. Yep, Chazz has a softer side obviously, since he considered Jaden a friend. Good luck with that duel. Thanks for the review!**

**Nathan: Thanks. Yeah, Jaden crashed his own funeral and didn't understand that's what was going on, lol. Yep, Marie vs. Zell should be good. Heh, yeah, no one better stand in her path when she's on the warpath. I don't think you have to worry, she took the comment in stride. (/Watches her tail swish back and forth roughly.\) I could be wrong though, lol. Thanks for the review!**

**Raymond: Heh, Syrus is starting to get frequent Shadow Realm miles, lol! He's kind of like Grandpa Moto actually. The old man lost his soul like twice too, and then there is Yami Bakura, who stayed lost so often, lol. But yeah, the sex slave comment is all in Zell's mind. He had thoughts that Marie was that way due to the past (check out the chapters on when Zell kidnapped Marie in the past to grasp why he constantly calls her that). Illidan for sure isn't going to like this. Thanks for the review!**

**Knives91: LOL! I don't think the ninjas could help with that operation. Yep, the lovers quarrel is nice, hehe. LOL! I bet you're right that she comes out on top. She always seems to… Uh, I mean, thanks for the review!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Yep, there is more to this story than you originally thought there would be. I kind of did setup last duel to seem like the end, but it's not. Heh, yeah, when this story doesn't show completed, it's not completed, plus I did leave clues, like about the reviews beating **_**ToP**_** out, hehe. Yeah, it was kind of obvious that Zell was returning with my chapter title I suppose. As for Illidan joining Marie in the duel, heh, I don't know. Well, I do know, but can't say, lol! Thanks for the review!**

**JudaiAsuka-fan: Yep, Jaden returned while crashing his own funeral, lol. Thanks about the cute part with Jaden and Alexis. Heh, they had to have their cute moment somewhere or another. Yep, a duel between Zell and Marie is about to begin, making thing interesting. If she loses, she loses her memories and becomes Zell's slave, but if she wins, Zell is out of here! Thanks for the review!**

**sirbj: Yep, from heated battle between Jaden and Yugi to Marie battling it out with Zell. LOL! Yes, poor Syrus can't seem to escape the Shadow Realm ever, hehe. Yeah, first Zell that sent him with the Sacred Beasts, then Zell sent him again, but this time in Zane's body. Poor man, he just can't catch a break. Heh, you think you know who's going to win, eh? Well, don't be so sure, because a duel can go either way, hehe. Thanks for the review!**

**Thank you everyone for your reviews this time around. I appreciate all of them. We're still making progress towards the goal of beating **_**ToP**_** in reviews, so there is hope to beat it. At least we have a nice second place record if nothing else happens, which is good enough for me either way. Thank you all again for your reviews. They are truly helpful.**

**Well, I'm off to go do stuff. I hope you all like the chapter. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 83**

"I'll begin." Zane calmly said while drawing. "I summon Infernal Dragon (2000/0) in defense mode."

A tower of flames shot up from the ground without warning, and slowly from it, a dragon with black skin and a white under belly materialized onto the field in a defensive hunched over stance. It had sharp clawed feet and hands, with a strong tail that had a sharp pitchfork like end, large blade like spikes sticking out from it's knees and backside, mighty wings with black on the outside and red on the inside, and an iguana like hood on it's face.

"To end, I'll place these two cards face down. Let's see what you can do slave girl." (Zane 8000, Marie 8000)

Drawing, Marie examined her new card and smirked. "You're going to regret all of those comments momentarily Zell. I'll begin by playing the ritual spell End of the World. To summon the monster I want, I must discard a monster or monsters totaling eight stars, so I'll send Majestic Mech – Goryu to my Graveyard. Now I can special summon this, my Ruin, Queen of Oblivion (2300/2000)!"

Gradually, a beautiful woman with white long hair that fell right below her butt, wearing black gloves that came up right above her elbows and a long sleeveless dress that went around her neck and dropped to the ground materialized. Her dress had red on the top part, followed by white and finally black from her hips down. A pair of gold bracelets hung off of each of her wrists, and a strange mostly gold staff with a red somewhat forked design on the end. On her head sat a black and partially red crown that stuck up, but had a bit of a plate in the back.

"Ruin may have a pretty face, but she's much more. First though, I have something else to play. I activate the spell Premature Burial, forcing me to give up 800 life points in order to bring back a monster …"

In mid-sentence, black bolts of electricity began striking Marie, making her scream out in pain. She instantly doubled over, covering her stomach with her one arm.

Breathing hard, she asked "What was that?"

Sneering, Zane remarked "That was the penalty for taking life point damage. Every time one of us loses life points, we receive a shock to our systems. Of course, I think so much more of it."

"And why is that?" Marie questioned with a bit of a ragged breath.

Smiling evilly, Zane replied "Because the more damage I inflict upon you, the more it will harm your child. Just think, those zaps to it's body can't be good. After all, it's within your womb, filled with fluid. The child will cook to death, thus severing you even farther from Illidan once I erase your memories."

Clenching her right fist, Marie closed her eyes and lowly growled. "_I can't allow that to happen. But how am I going to protect my child from my mistakes? I know I can't keep my life points safe forever, that's for sure. Still, I have to find a way to protect this little one._"

Thinking hard, Marie pondered on ideas till one came to her. "_The barrier I used to protect the baby from the poison, I could expand it to keep all currents out. If I do this though, I'll be weaker, meaning the bolts will have more of an affect on me due that'll be giving the baby all of my energy._"

Without even thinking any further, she began summoning up her Shadow Powers within her body and reformed the barrier she had once used a week ago. Slowly, the barrier formed around the baby till finally it was completed.

"_Don't worry little one, I swear, I'll protect you with my life._"

Reopening her eyes, Marie steeled her resolve and said "You may have made this duel a death trap for mine and Illidan's child, but I won't let you harm it."

"I see you're using a barrier again to protect that brat. Foolishness my little sex slave, for you'll leave yourself open to more damage from the bolts of electricity." Zane chastised.

Smirking, Marie coolly replied "We'll see about that. In the meantime, my Premature Burial's effect kicks in, so now I bring back Majestic Mech – Goryu (2900/1800)!"

Instantly, a white dragon like creature materialized onto the field. It had many bands of white on it's body, with it's mid-section, which was close to it's head, having a pair of metal wings attached. A majority of it's body appeared to be golden sparkling energy, which was somehow retained in the white bands.

"I'm far from through yet, because next up, I play the spell Quick Summon! This let's me bring out another monster, so I choose my Kaiser Seahorse (1700/1650)!"

Materializing onto the field was a blue and purple water warrior with a spear in his left hand.

"Don't get too familiar with my monster though, because I'm activating his special ability. By sacrificing him for a Light Attribute monster, he counts as a double sacrifice, so meet my Guardian Angel Joan (2800/2000)!"

The blue and purple creature instantly vanished in a small flash of light and a female angel with pink skin, a white dress that showed her many curves and golden wings took the creature's place.

"Time to see how you like the pain! First, let's start with Joan, so go attack Infernal Dragon with Golden Wing Burst!"

The pink skinned angel's wings instantly began to glow a bright golden color as energy began building within them. Bolts of energy instantly began pouring off of the wings and into a sphere in front of the pink skinned angel. Slowly, the golden sphere formed and began to glow brightly. Pushing her hands behind the sphere, the angel gave a shove, sending it hurtling towards the weaker dragon. The sphere scored a direct hit, making the black dragon howl out in pain before shattering into millions of pieces.

"Joan's effect kicks in now. My life points increase by the attack points of your destroyed monster, meaning I get two grand."

Closing her eyes, Marie slowly felt the golden glow wash over her body as the pink skinned angel sent out energy to her.

Reopening her eyes, Marie smiled, saying "I'm not through yet. Ruin, attack him directly with Oblivion Strike!"

Glancing over her shoulder at Marie, the white haired woman nodded and rushed forward with her staff in hand. Pulling back, the woman prepared to strike Zane.

Sneering at the woman, Zane called out "Not happening Marie. I play my trap, Power Wall! For every card I send from my deck to the Graveyard, I can lower the Battle Damage I receive from your attack by 100 points."

Grabbing a pile of cards from his deck, Zane coldly tossed them into his Graveyard. "I toss out 23 cards, meaning your attack was useless!"

Instantly, a barrier formed in front of Zane, in which the white haired woman struck with her staff, sending out a shower of sparks of energy while her staff continued to grind away on the barrier. After a few moments, she finally backed away to Marie's field and sighed.

"Why would you toss out half your deck!?" Marie asked in exasperation.

Once more sneering, Zane remarked "I don't need those cards. That's why."

Lightly growling, Marie fired back "But that's a complete disrespect for your deck! To throw away such great cards, that's so illogical!"

"Call it what you want, but it will win me the duel." Zane coldly replied.

Clenching her fists, Marie called out "You may disrespect your deck, but I'll show you why you shouldn't! Attack him directly Goryu with Golden Radiance!

The white and gold dragon like creature softly roared and raised it's head to stare at Zane. Opening it's jaws, the white and gold dragon released a stream of golden energy, striking Zane hard and causing a large explosion. Afterwards, bolts of dark electricity began striking his body, but Zane only stood strong till the bolts stopped and smoke began pouring off of his body.

Shocked, Marie asked "Didn't that even hurt?"

Sneering at her, Zane coolly remarked "Not at all. After a while, this body got used to the pain. Now it don't hurt one bit. Instead of pain, I feel the urge to win a duel and accomplish my greatest victory!"

Slightly shocked, Marie scowled at Zane and said "How sad that your victory won't be attained. Soon enough, you'll lose. I end my turn." (Zane 5100, Marie 9200)

Picking up a card calmly, Zane looked at it and smirked evilly. "Time to pay for last turn Marie. I play the spell Polymerization, letting me fuse the Cyberdark Edge (800/800), Cyberdark Horn (800/800), and Cyberdark Keel (800/800) from my hand to form the Cyberdark Dragon (1000/1000)!"

Slowly materializing onto the field were three black creatures. The first was a strange looking creature with long metallic wings that had sharp blade feathers. The metallic creature looked like a large bug with a long tail that had a pincher type tail, pinchers on it's mouth, and two stick like arms. The wings on the creature was massive, even larger than it's main body. The next was another metallic bug like creature with many sharp spiky wings, a series of spikes, four pronged spiked arms, a sharp tail, and a strange set of jaws with a three purple spots on it's head appeared with a primitive roar. The final one was a black metallic snake like dragon with wires hanging off of it's body.

Once fully on the field, the three swirled together, forming a bright blinding light. From the light came a creature that was a combination of the metallic looking bugs and machine snake like creature. It had a massive wingspan filled with sharp metal wings, a long metallic tail, and the head of the creature was a strange combination of the three creatures' mouths. It let out a loud roar, showing it's hate for other monsters.

"Thanks to my dragon's special ability, I can now equip a Dragon Type monster to it and my dragon shall absorb that monster's attack points. I choose my Diablos, King of the Abyss (2800/1000) (1000 2800 3800/1000)!"

Roaring loudly as it appeared was a large black dragon with a massive wingspan, powerful clawed hands and feet, and a strange spiked head. Reaching out with wires and it's wings, the large machine dragon wrapped it's wires around the large black dragon and integrated it into it's being. The black dragon howled in pain, but then roared as if it enjoyed it.

"Oh yes, there is one more effect that I forgot to mention of Cyberdark Dragon's. It gains 100 attack points per a card in my Graveyard, and right now, all told, I have twenty-nine, meaning a 2900 point boost for my dragon (3800 2900 6700/1000)."

Roaring loudly, the black machine dragon glowed with a dark aura as it's strength increased to incredible heights.

Marie only gasped at the new creature. "It's too strong for all three of my monsters…" she murmured lowly.

"Exactly! Cyberdark Dragon, obliterate that pathetic Goryu with Darkness Strident Blaze!" Zane ordered with great coldness in his voice.

With a mighty roar, the powerful black machine dragon took aim and released a powerful stream of black energy at the weaker white and gold dragon. The white and gold dragon took the hit head on and blew up with a massive explosion that sent smoke and debris everywhere on the field. The blast quickly shredded through the smoke and struck Marie, making her cry out in great pain and sink to one knee from the force of the blow.

"Oh yeah, don't forget Marie, you have to take a little shock therapy now!" Zane evilly laughed.

With his words spoken, the bolts of dark electricity began striking Marie, making her scream out in even more pain. Tears began to well up in her eyes as she tried hard to withstand the pain. After a few minutes that felt like an eternity, the bolts stopped and Marie fell forward onto her hands and knees, panting heavily with sweat pouring off of her. Smoke rose up from her uniform, which showed a few small burn marks from where the bolts had hit her and singed her skin.

"Where's that cockiness you had earlier? Did you learn that your place is on your knees after all?" Zane cruelly asked with an evil laugh.

Gritting her teeth, Marie forced herself up and glared at Zane, saying "I wouldn't get too confident if I were you."

"Really? The way the things look right now is you're going to lose. Come, show me if you can last much longer Marie. I like feisty girls, so show me you can still struggle." (Zane 5100, Marie 5400)

"Yeah, well I'll enjoy it even more when you're out of Zane's body! My move!" Marie quickly said while drawing a card.

Examining the card in her hand, she glanced out at Zane's field and pondered on what to do. "_I can't attack him, and nothing in my deck has enough attack points to match Zane's Cyberdark Dragon. Still, I have to devise a way to beat him._"

Glancing at Zane's deck, she softly smiled. "_That little maneuver of his really cost him, and could be what I need to win. My best guess right now is he only has ten to twelve cards left in his deck. Once he runs out, I automatically win. Maybe I can stall him till that point. It's all I can do for now._"

"I'll kick things off this turn by switching my remaining monsters to defense mode."

Both the pink skinned angel and the woman with long white hair took up kneeling stances and crossed their arms while horizontal card images appeared underneath of them.

"Next, I'll summon Barrier Statue of the Heavens (1000/1000) in defense mode."

Instantly, a white and gold statue made of marble and gold appeared onto the field. On it's back was a large golden wing like circle. The statue's head had a strange hood covering it's head and had a pair of white golden eyes.

"I'll end my turn at that." (Zane 5100, Marie 5400)

"How desperate you are." Zane coldly stated.

Glaring daggers at him, Marie replied "Better than a coward who attacks kids who can't defend themselves against you. Why are you doing this anyways Zell?"

Darkly chuckling, he remarked "Simple really. I need more Duel Energy in order to complete my goal. The more people I defeat, the more my Shadow Powers increase. I take their very souls and add it to my Shadow Powers, thus increasing my strength each time."

"So, you use souls to get stronger rather than train. How pathetic you've become." Marie smartly stated.

Sneering while drawing, Zane remarked "It's gotten me rather far Marie. Just think, once I defeat you, I'll have your memories erased and all of your power at my disposal. I'll be invincible, and crush Illidan once and for all!"

"You won't get the chance since I'm destroying you here!" Marie argued back.

"We'll see." Zane confidently replied. Looking at his new card, he said "I activate this, my spell Pot of Greed. This means I get two new cards, plus my Cyberdark Dragon gets stronger (6700 100 6800/1000)."

Picking up two cards, he smirked. "I play the spell Fusion Recovery. With this, I can take a Polymerization card and one Fusion Material monster from my Graveyard. Watch carefully as I return my Proto-Cyber Dragon, which weakens my dragon (6800 – 200 100 6700/1000)."

Slowly, the monster card and the spell card slid out of Zane's Graveyard Slot and into his awaiting hand. Picking both up, he placed the monster card into his hand and then turned the spell towards Marie, saying "I play Polymerization, allowing me to fuse Proto-Cyber Dragon (1100/600) and Cyber Dragon (2100/1600) from my hand to create the Cyber Twin Dragon (2800/2100) (6700 300 7000/1000)."

Two machine snake like dragons appeared onto the field in a flash. The first was an older dull grey colored metal and had many wires hanging out of it's body, as if it wasn't finished being built. The other dragon was had a sleek silver body that was finished with a simple strong head.

Together, the pair swirled together to form a twin headed silver machine dragon that looked snake like. With a loud roar, each head made it's presence known.

"Cyber Twin Dragon has a very unique ability. You see, it can attack twice in one turn." Zane bragged.

"That means I'll lose all of my defenses…" Marie mumbled in somewhat shock.

Opening his eyes wide, Zane yelled "Exactly! Cyber Twin Dragon, attack that pathetic statue and pink angel with Double Strident Blaze!"

Roaring loudly, each head opened it's jaws and shot out a white stream of energy straight at the white and gold statue, and the pink skinned angel. The blasts struck the two creatures quickly, shattering each instantly.

"Now Cyberdark Dragon, get rid of that remaining monster!"

Letting out a loud thunderous roar, the dragon fired a powerful stream of black energy straight for the woman with white hair. The beam blew her apart within moments of the blast hitting. Smoke filled the field from the destruction of the monster, making Marie lightly cough while Zane smiled crazily at her.

"You're defenseless now Marie. What ever shall you do now?" Zane taunted. (Zane 5100, Marie 5400)

Glaring at Zane, Marie yelled out "Don't think I'm done yet! Watch this!"

Drawing, she smirked at the card and turned it towards Zane, saying "I play the spell Card of Demise! This lets me pick up cards till I have five in my hand."

In a quick motion, she grabbed five cards from the top of her deck and placed them within her left hand.

"Of course, there is a cost associated with this. In five turns, I must discard my entire hand, but I intend on winning by then. For now, I discard Zeradias, Herald of Heaven to the Graveyard, whose special ability kicks in. Thanks to his ability, I can add the field spell The Sanctuary in the Sky to my hand."

Placing the monster card into her Graveyard Slot, Marie pulled out her deck and began searching it. Finally finding the card she wanted, she placed it within her left hand and shuffled her deck and placed it back in it's slot.

"Let's have a change of scenery, shall we? I play The Sanctuary of the Sky!"

A slot on the end of the Duel Disk popped open and she stuck the card onto the open slot. It then pulled back in and the Duel Disk slightly glowed. Quickly, the scenery of the duel changed. A blue sky with large white fluffy clouds appeared and a large stone building appeared behind Marie.

"If you have Zane's memories, then you'll know this place isn't a vacation spot. Every Fairy Type monster that battles in here and is destroyed takes zero Battle Damage. But I'm not through yet, for I summon Warrior of Zera (1600/1600)!"

A man with green gloves, a green helmet with dog like ears sticking up from it, a green piece that covered part of his chest and shoulders, a pair of blue pants, a red scarf wrapped around his neck, and dark brown skin with well toned muscles appeared. In his right hand was a blue sword and his left held some kind of chain that hooked to the sword.

Darkly chuckling, Zane pointed towards Marie, smugly saying "Stupid move there Marie. You played a field spell meant for Fairy Type monsters, only to summon a Warrior Type. What a waste!"

"Really, is that so?" Marie taunted. "Well then, you won't mind when I sacrifice him in order to special summon Archlord Zerato (2800/2300), now will you?"

The green armored warrior instantly vanished in a flash of light. A new light immediately began emerging from the ancient building and shot out onto the field a creature with large white wings, that formed around his upper chest and a red scarf covered his neck, a white helmet with red horns, a blue skirt like appeared around the waist, a powerful curved blade in his right hand, and purple skin that lightly gleamed.

Growling lightly, Zane calmed himself and smirked. "Not bad Marie, but your creature isn't strong enough to do any damage."

"True, but watch this." Marie remarked. Pulling a card from her left hand, she placed it within her Graveyard Slot, saying "I discard Radiant Jeral, which has a Light Attribute, allowing me to activate Zerato's effect. He can now destroy all of your monsters on your field, so say farewell to them both!"

The purple skinned warrior pulled back his saber, and in a single stroke, the sword made an energy wave in the direction of the two machine monsters.

Sneering, Zane calmly said "Very nice Marie, but you're going to have to do better than that! I play my face down spell, De-Fusion! Now I can split apart my Cyberdark Dragon into it's three original forms. Welcome back Cyberdark Horn (800/800), Cyberdark Edge (800/800), and Cyberdark Keel (800/800)."

The large dark metal dragon let out a small mechanical roar and instantly turned into three beams of light that were missed by the energy wave coming at them. The wave slashed through the twin headed machine dragon, which let out a massive roar before exploding into millions of pieces. Once the wave passed, the three beams of light landed onto the field, returning the three strange looking dark metal machine creatures.

"Since I just special summoned the three of them, their effects activate, which allow me to equip a level four or lower Dragon Type monster to each. First, I'll equip Rare Metal Dragon (2400/1200) to Cyberdark Horn (800 2400 3200/800). Next, Cyberdark Edge gains Infernal Dragon's (2000/0) attack points (800 2000 2800/800). And last but not least, Cyberdark Keel is equipped with Cave Dragon (2000/100) (800 2000 2800/800)."

One by one, the three dark metal machine creatures roared loudly as three dragons suddenly appeared onto the field. The first was a powerful heavy set metal dragon with no wings. Materializing next was the powerful black winged dragon from earlier in the duel. Last to appear was a powerful heavy set green dragon with long green scales.

Once all three appeared, one by one, they were absorbed and wired up to the three machine monsters, each making their wired up dragon's squeal with pain.

"STOP IT!" Marie cried out. "YOU'RE HURTING THEM!"

Glancing at Marie, Zane sneered. "So?" he mockingly asked.

Glaring at Zane, Marie angrily spat out "You are despicable! To hurt your own monsters just to increase the strength of another one of yours, that is truly cruel! You will pay for this."

"You haven't the power to stop me little slave girl." Zane confidently said.

Growling, Marie shot back "I will stop you and save Zane, and all the others! Just you watch Zell!"


	84. Chapter 84: Darkness vs Light, Pt 2

**Hey everyone! Well, it's been a crazy day thus far. Monday, I dropped my car off at a dealership to be worked on during Tuesday. I got the call Tuesday on the car and found out that they could have it ready for that evening, provided the part came in on the part truck. Well, I called at 4 to see if the car was going to be ready, only to find out the part truck hadn't arrived. I then got a call a few minutes later, finding out that the part truck wasn't coming till Wednesday. I didn't care due that my mate is off both days. At any rate, I decided to not come into work till noon Wednesday so I could go get my car. Well, me and my mate went to get my car this morning, and picked it up. On my way home, it suddenly shut down... and wouldn't restart. Sheesh, I had to call the dealership and let them know what happened. Then I attempted to find a ride from my mate, who didn't answer. I got a hold of my step mom, who nicely came and got me. Now I'm waiting on the dealership to get back with me and let me know what happened and let me know if I can get my car back tonight. Hopefully I will… Heh, it really sucks to go get your car from a dealership only to have it break down. Then when I got to work, I found out I had a meeting at 1, which it was nearly 1 by then. Next I have one at 3 also… Sheesh, it's a busy day…**

**Writing wise, I've been doing lots on **_**Another**_** and **_**MtM**_**. I'm like a writing machine currently, hehe. I'm going to keep to my date on **_**Another**_** due that that's a special day to me.**

**Last time, Zell in Zane's body and Marie began their duel, with Zell taking a bit of a lead early. Still, Marie fought back and has finally found an opening. Can she continue to fight on and protect her child at the same process, or will Zell do the unthinkable to Marie and destroy the bonds that connect her and Illidan?**

**Ok, moving on, time for reviews!**

**DuelistBlake1852: Interesting ending to your duel with Yami. Thanks about the chapter. Very true, Zell is mistreating Zane's monsters rather roughly. Much like how Illidan reacted, Marie hated to see the monsters harmed like that. Very true about the Cyberdark monsters only being able to equip with level 3 or lower monsters. Like before, when Illidan fought Zane/Zell, I used level 4 instead. There just aren't that many good attack point level 3 dragons, thus I decided to do what the show did and followed with level 4. Heh, you're counting on Marie to win, eh Pharaoh? Hehe, it could happen I suppose. Thanks for the review!**

**x-knight20: Thank you. Yep, Zell is a sick monster who barely qualifies to be human anymore. Marie will hopefully kick his butt! Thanks for the review.**

**sirbj: Yep, the duel started. Heh, true, it's really Fairies vs. Dark Machine Dragons. The winner of this match has yet to be decided. As you've noticed, both sides seem rather evenly matched. Yes, only the writer knows the eventual winner I suppose, lol. Yeah, one thing is for sure. If Illidan and Marie's child didn't survive, I could almost guarantee neither would be the same again. Heh, that is a nice mystery. Thanks for the review!**

**Knives91: Yep, it's getting a bit brutal out there. Heh, the backup is somewhere, I'm sure of it. LOL! I suppose the ninjas could help in any situation, hehe. Thanks for the review!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Very true, Cyberdark Dragon's effect gives it only 100 points per a monster in Zell's Graveyard. The only reason I changed that was due that the anime followed suit in season 2, plus a 100 points a card does way more damage than a monster. At most, with most realistic decks, it would gain 2000 or so. I figure less due that most people load their decks with more spell/trap than monsters. Heh, I'm old school though and load mine with more monsters, like barely more, hehe. Oh, the US finally aired an episode? That's surprising, lol. I've been watching mine off a website in Britain, so I'm up to like episode 134. It just sucks that the US is slow on getting episodes out. Thanks for the review!**

**Well, that's it for today. Thank you everyone for your reviews thus far. I've enjoyed all of them. I truly do thank you all for your reviews, and for pointing out errors or possible errors I may have committed. It's nice to know my writing can be picked apart so easily, lol. I'm kidding of course. I know all of you point out stuff with good intentions, or bad, which I do appreciate. It let's me know some people know what to look for I suppose. Thanks for doing it.**

**Ok, I'm all done with the reviews for the day. Now I'm off to find out if my poor car will be mine again tonight or not. For now, enjoy!**

**Chapter 84**

Pulling the remaining card from her hand, Marie called out "Since I just sent Radiant Jeral to the Graveyard, I gain 1000 life points. But I'm not done this turn, so I play the equip spell Malevolent Nuzzler! This raises the attack points of Zerato by 700 (2800 700 3500/2300)!"

Appearing around the purple skinned angel's neck instantly was a golden necklace with a purple stone attached. The body of the angel instantly glowed with a purple aura as his strength increased further.

"Zerato, make him pay! Attack his Cyberdark Horn with Angel Wing Burst!"

The wings of the angel warrior immediately began glowing. Pointing his two wings at the rough black metal looking creature, small jagged diamond like structures formed on the wings. Suddenly, the structures were sent rushing forward and caused a large explosion upon contact with the metal monster.

"So much for that scrap heap." Marie stated.

Slowly, the smoke cleared out and revealed that the machine creature still lived, but the dragon attached to it was gone.

"Huh, what happened? Why is it still standing?" Marie asked in a bit of shock.

Darkly chuckling, Zane responded with "Rather simple little sex slave. My Cyberdark Horn was equipped with a monster. When that is the case and it's attacked and would lose the battle, the dragon takes the hit instead of my Horn. Of course, since the dragon is gone, Horn loses some points (3200 – 2400 800/800). Oh well, easy come, easy go."

Lightly growling, Marie glared daggers at Zane. Without warning, she suddenly calmed down and smirked, saying "That maybe the case, but you still take Battle Damage."

That said, diamond like spikes suddenly came pouring out of the back of the machine creature and pierced Zane's body. Small drops of blood began to bleed out from the impact spot, while suddenly the dark electricity began zapping him. Zane didn't flinch or blink though, as if he was unaffected by the bolts.

"Done yet?" Zane asked with a bored expression while the bolts faded.

"I have no choice but to end my move." Marie quickly remarked. (Zane 4800, Marie 6400)

Picking up a new card, Zen examined it momentarily before saying "I activate Cyberdark Edge's special ability. By cutting it's attack points in half, it can direct attack you."

"What!?" Marie immediately chocked out in shock.

"Cyberdark Edge, show her your Sonic Screech (2800/2 1400/800)" Zane coldly commanded.

Screeching loudly, the dark machine creature with the black dragon attached spread it's wings and began sending white blades of sound waves flying towards Marie. The blades instantly made contact and cut into her right shoulder, sending a small spray of blood into the air. Upon the strike, Marie cried out in pain and grabbed the injury.

"It's not over yet my sex slave. Don't forget, you feel the true pain now!" Zane roared.

Bolts of dark electricity instantly filled the air around Marie, striking her rapidly and forcing her to let go of her wound. Once more, she cried out in pain and sank to one knee. Slowly, the bolts vanished and she whimpered in pain, but forced herself back onto her feet.

Sneering, Zane coldly said "Still not ready to surrender yourself, eh? You'd do well to know your place."

"Never!" Marie hissed back, but flinched with pain.

Darkly chuckling, Zane replied "Very well. I switch Cyberdark Horn and Cyberdark Keel to defense. To end, I place a face down card." (Zane 4800, Marie 5000)

Drawing her next card, Marie examined it for a moment before saying "I summon Nova Summoner (1400/800)!"

Appearing in a rainbow aura was a strange ring like orange and striped monster with bug like wings and a small green core. The creature lightly glowed with it's rainbow aura, seemingly waiting.

"What a useless creature." Zane said with a bored expression.

Smirking, Marie lightly giggled, saying "You'll change your tune soon enough. Zerato, attack his Cyberdark Edge with Angel Wing Burst!"

Raising his wings to point at the dark machine creature with the black dragon attached to it, the purple skinned angel began building up green energy within the feathers of his wings, which transformed into solid diamond like crystals. In a flurry, several diamond feathers shot out and struck the dark dragon attached to the machine creature, making the dragon howl in pain. Smoke instantly covered the field upon impact, leaving the machine creature shrouded in it.

Once the smoke began clearing, the machine creature stood ready while the black dragon appeared gone. Staring indifferently at Marie, Zane calmly said "As I told you once before Marie, it's pointless to attack my Cyberdark monsters since they won't be destroyed while equipped with a monster (2800 – 2000 800/800)."

Smirking once more, Marie replied "I knew your monster wouldn't be destroyed, but you forget, you take Battle Damage still."

A few of the diamond spikes instantly came flying off of the machine creature and buried itself into Zane's left shoulder. Blood instantly began to drip from the wound, but Zane emotionlessly removed it from his shoulder. Black electricity instantly began zapping him, but still, he remained poised and composed.

"Time to go in for the kill! Nova Summoner, attack Cyberdark Edge with Nova Shot!" Marie commanded with a pointing gesture towards the same black machine creature.

Lifting into the air, the ring like creature's center sphere began to glow brightly with neon green energy. In a simple release, the sphere shot a stream of hot green flames at the machine creature, which began to melt and squealed out in pain. The creature soon shattered, sending a burst of flames at Zane. Upon impact, Zane cringed slightly as a few small holes were burned into his black trench coat. Instantly following the flames were black electrical bolts, making Zane grit his teeth together as he hunched over a bit.

"I thought as much. You aren't immune to pain completely." Marie snidely remarked.

Glaring at Marie, Zane instantly changed his mood and smirked evilly, saying "Maybe so, but don't forget, this is your friend's body. Destroy it and he won't have a place to return to."

"You'll be long gone before his body is." Marie sharply remarked. "I end my turn." (Zane 3500, Marie 5000)

Calmly drawing, Zane said "I first switch my Cyberdark Keel back into attack mode."

Uncurling it's body from it's coiled up position, the snake like dark machine dragon let out a soft roar as it glared at the two opposing monsters.

"Next, I play my trap, Call of the Haunted! Rise up once more Cyberdark Edge (800/800)!"

Reappearing onto the field once more was the powerful dark metal machine creature with massive wings.

"And once again, I can equip a new Dragon Type monster to my Edge. I choose Rare Metal Dragon (2400/1200), so add your power to Cyberdark Edge (800 2400 3200/800)!"

Materializing onto the field once more was the powerful heavy set metal dragon with no wings. Instantly, the dark metal machine creature sent wires out and punctured the metal of the dragon and pulled it to it's body. The dragon squealed out in pain from the intrusions, but finally gave up struggling after a minute.

"I cut Edge's attack points in half (3200 / 2 1600/800), allowing it direct attack you! Hit her with Sonic Screech!"

Spreading it's wings, the dark machine creature shot out several blades of wind straight for Marie. Three of the blades struck her: one on her already wounded right shoulder, another on her left shoulder, and the last on her right leg. Each impact instantly sent out a small spray of blood, making Marie cringe and whimper in pain.

"And now for the fun part!" Zane roared with an evil laugh.

Black bolts of electricity immediately formed and began striking Marie, making her collapse to one knee and scream out in extreme agony. She finally was forced down onto her hands and other knee, and let out a much louder scream from the pain. The bolts finally settled, but smoke rose up from the strikes. Bare skin could be seen in places where the strikes had burned through her clothing and onto her skin, leaving small scorch marks. Her body trembled from the shocks as she panted hard.

"Ah, how wonderful it must be to suffer needlessly. If only you had given in my little sex slave, you wouldn't have to suffer." Zane admonished.

Still on the ground panting and cringing from the pain, Marie managed to look up with a small glare, but instantly grit her teeth and looked back down. Blood soaked her uniform where the wind blades had cut into her, and a small trickle of blood came running down from corner of her mouth. With great difficulty, she sat up onto her knees and attempted to catch her breath.

Slowly, she growled out "I won't… give up to… the likes of… you."

Darkly chuckling, Zane smirked evilly once more and replied "You have had your chance to give up like a good little sex slave, but I see you won't. I'll just have to teach you not to disobey me. Cyberdark Keel, show her the reason she shouldn't disobey! Attack her pathetic Nova Summoner with Keel Strike!"

Roaring loudly, the dark colored machine snake sent it's sharp pointed tail flying straight for the ring creature. The creature's sphere was instantly shattered, causing the ring creature to send out a wave of flames and self destruct, leaving nothing behind but a cloud of smoke. Without warning, from the smoke, the tail of the creature came flying straight at Marie and struck her in her left shoulder, making her fall over backwards while screaming in pain. Once the machine creature pulled it's tail back, blood instantly gushed from the wound while she attempted to hold pressure on it to keep the blood in. Bolts of dark electricity instantly formed around Marie, shocking her once more, making her curl up into a fetal ball.

Wincing with great pain, Marie panted out roughly "What… happened? My field… spell should have… stopped all… Battle… Damage."

"True, but I forgot to mention something about Cyberdark Keel." Zane coldly stated. "When it destroys a monster in battle, it deals you an additional 300 points of direct damage."

Coughing a bit, Marie slowly sat back onto her rump and cringed as she lightly touched her newest wound. Glaring at Zane, she saw her vision becoming lightly blurry and felt a dizzying sensation.

"_Oh no, I'm losing too much blood! My wounds, they'll kill me if I keep losing blood like this. Not good, not good at all! I need to heal, but how? I'm using all of my power to keep the barrier up around the baby within me._"

Gritting her teeth, Marie glared once more at Zane and slowly stood up. "_I can't give up now! Mine and Illidan's child is counting on me! I refuse to let wounds like these bring me down! No matter what, I will protect our baby, even if it does mean I'll die!_"

"That glare really doesn't fit that pretty face." Zane remarked.

Catching her breath and finally standing up fully, Marie yelled "SHUT UP! I won't lose to you! Too many people are counting on me!"

"_I promised to save Zane, and I won't go back on my word. I've yet to ever go back on it, and I swear I won't now! I will save Syrus, Zane, and the others, and no matter what, protect my child! I will not abandon it and Illidan, no matter what!_"

"You may have destroyed my monster, but you made a major mistake in doing that! Once Nova Summoner is destroyed, I can special summon a new Light Attribute Fairy Type monster from my deck, but there is also a second special ability to my monster."

Taking a breath, she smirked, saying "When Sanctuary of the Sky is out, I can instead special summon Airknight Parshath (1900/1400)!"

Instantly, a bright white glow filled the field as a half angel, half horse creature appeared. The angel half wore blue and gold armor, and had wings draping across it's body in different places. In his right hand was a sword, while his left held a shield. The horse half was white, and had wings on it's back.

Sneering, Zane lightly chuckled, saying "Heh, not bad my little sex slave, but can you hold on much longer against my advances? I doubt it, so for now I place one card face down and end my turn." (Zane 3500, Marie 3100)

Grabbing a new card, Marie smirked upon looking at it. "It's time I turned up the heat, and it starts with this! I sacrifice Airknight Parshath in order to special summon his next form! Meet Neo-Parshath, the Sky Paladin (2300/2000)!"

Immediately, the angel/horse creature vanished only to cause a blinding white light to fill the field. As the light died down, a new angel, this one looking like a powerful warrior, touched down onto the field. He had massive white wings that were held to his back with an orange and blue set of bindings. Where a half horse body once was were a pair of strong legs covered with a flowing white battle skirt. On each arm were massive sharp blades, with bold armor covering parts of the blade. The chest area of the warrior was now covered in grey and blue armor, and his head had a new helmet to cover his entire face. Fully on the field, the angel let out a battle cry, signifying his readiness to fight.

"Zerato, take down Cyberdark Edge once more with Angel Wing Burst!"

Pointing his powerful wings at the machine creature once more, the feathers on the angel's wings instantly became diamond shards that glowed brightly. In a flurry, a burst of shards were shot out and struck the metal dragon that was attached to the creature. The dragon shattered under the pressure, and a few of the shards struck Zane, making him lightly cringe when a blood spot formed at the place of impact. Bolts of black electricity soon followed, striking Zane's body over and over before dying down and leaving him still cringing.

"I'm far from done with you Zane! Go Neo-Parshath, attack Cyberdark Edge with Paladin Slash!"

Leaping forward, the warrior angel raised both blade arms and slashed the machine creature in diagonal slashes. Slowly, the creature split apart into four sections and shattered, but not before letting out a horrific screech of pain. Seeing his attack had worked, the angel rushed forward and struck Zane hard with one blade, forming a large slash mark across his chest, making him instantly grasp it while recoiling in pain. The electricity with black bolts soon spread over his body, making him lightly growl out in pain.

In a smug tone, Marie said "Whenever Neo-Parshath does Battle Damage to you, I get to draw one new card."

Picking up a card, she placed it in her Spell/Trap Slot, saying "I'll place it face down. Oh yeah, guess what. Whenever Sanctuary of the Sky is out, Neo-Parshath's other special ability kicks in. His attack and defense points are boosted by the difference in our life points, so long as I have the most. Right now, I do, meaning Neo-Parshath gains the difference (3100 – 1800 1400), meaning he just got a 1400 point boost (2300 1400 3700/2000 1400 3400)."

The powerful angel instantly began glowing with a bright white aura as his he clenched his fists tight. The aura slowly died down, leaving the angel to look more confident.

"I'll end my turn now. Looks like you're going down Zell, one way or another." (Zane 1700, Marie 3100)

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"SHADOW BLADE!"

With a thunderous roar, several trees instantly were cut down, sending out thousands of splinters and a shockwave throughout the forest with trees toppling to the ground. A panting Illidan stood in a spot where the last tree stump stood with his left hand still glowing black with Shadow Magic crackling in it. It slowly faded, leaving his hand slightly trembling.

Staring off in the distance, Illidan didn't hear an approaching figure till he heard someone ask "What are you doing?"

Turning to find Jaden, Illidan took a deep breath and softly smiled, saying "Working off some anger."

Brow furrowing, Jaden asked seriously "What made you so angry that you'd go destroy the forest?"

"Marie…" Illidan lowly muttered. Taking a seat on a nearby fallen tree, he sighed and slumped forward and placed his hands on his knees.

Sitting down beside of Illidan, Jaden frowned again, asking "What did she do to make you so angry?"

Pondering Jaden's words, Illidan slowly constructed his response. "She wishes to help in the search for Zane." he finally said.

"And that's a problem because?"

Angrily, Illidan spat out "She's not fit to Jaden! I mean, she just got back from being kidnapped by Legato and nearly being poisoned to death, plus…"

Sighing deeply, he added "… on top of that, she's pregnant. I don't want anything bad to happen to her now that she's with our child."

"Oh…" Jaden mumbled. "But don't you think she should have a say too?"

Looking downwards, Illidan replied "Marie is in no condition to fight."

"But she's just pregnant, not injured." Jaden pointed out.

"THAT'S THE WHOLE POINT!" Illidan snapped.

Taken aback, Jaden looked at Illidan with deeply concerned eyes, asking "What's really wrong Illidan?"

Looking away immediately, Illidan muttered "Nothing."

"It's something, I know it." Jaden was quick to admonish. "Tell me."

"I said it's nothing." Illidan replied gruffly.

Standing up to stare Illidan in the face, Jaden calmly said "I know it's something. Tell me. You always told me that talking about it helps. Now tell me!"

Sighing, Illidan looked down at the ground and finally said "It's just that… in the past, back in our past lives, Marie nearly died when she was pregnant."

Slightly shocked, Jaden began to ask something, but was cut off with Illidan continuing to talk. "She was pregnant the day that Gozaburo used the Millennium Crown to kill Yami. I didn't know at the time she was pregnant because she had just found out that day. She was going to surprise me that night she told me after the incident. He could have easily killed her, and I'd have never known!"

Tears welled up in his eyes as he said "She got stabbed from behind by Gozaburo. Luckily, nothing vital was hit, but to know she was nearly taken from me, along with our child, that hit me hard. I was too weak to protect her then. Gozaburo's Millennium Crown overpowered my own Millennium Key, along with everyone else's items."

Clenching his fists tightly, Illidan added with tears flowing down his cheeks "I should have done more to save her, but I couldn't. She nearly died because I failed at my duty to protect her. I swore then that I wouldn't fail her again, and that's why I won't let her help with Zane."

Realization of Illidan's words hit Jaden hard as he sat back down beside of Illidan and put a comforting shoulder around him. "I'm sorry, I didn't know." he apologized.

"Well, now you know why I'm so adamant about not allowing her to help with Zane." Illidan admitted.

Nodding with understanding, Jaden softly said "But she feels she has a duty to fulfill in helping Zane. Like you, she is his friend, along with me and everyone else. We all feel we should help somehow."

"I know…" Illidan mumbled. "I feel guilty that I was the one that let Legato get to Zane. I had no idea that the pain of losing Syrus had affected him so much. If had, I'd have done more."

"No time to feel sorry for yourself Illidan." Jaden remarked.

Looking at him, Illidan smiled, replying with "True. It's over and said with. All we can do now is find Zane and try and fix the damage done by Legato."

"Easier said then done though, right?" Jaden asked with a friendly smile.

Nodding, Illidan lightly smiled again, saying "Right."

Standing up, he glanced around at the destruction and rubbed the back of his head, saying "Sheesh, I really did a number on this place."

"Yeah, I know. I didn't know you could do something like this." Jaden admitted.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan remarked "Eh, this is nothing to the stuff I used to do when Marie got me mad in the past. Let's just say, many objects and friends of mine got the bad end of the stick when helping me calm down."

"I'll remember that." Jaden was quick to reply with a smirk.

"Let's go back to the dorm. I'm sure Marie is simmering there right now."

"Alright, but you need to tell her what you told me." Jaden quickly said.

Sighing, Illidan nodded in agreement and led the way back. Once within sight of the house, he began to reach out with his Shadow Powers, trying to find Marie within the home so he knew where to go. Frowning, he muttered "Where is she?"

"Huh?" Jaden asked.

"She's not home." Illidan instantly said.

Reaching out further with his Shadow Powers, he began searching the dorm, only to come up short again. "She must have not come home yet, but that's not like her."

Once more reaching out with his powers, he began searching the island and quickly found her signal, only to growl loudly.

"DAMNIT!" he yelled while running off in the direction he sensed her.

Running after Illidan, Jaden quickly asked "What's wrong!?"

"Damn that woman, she ignored me and found Zane and got into a Shadow Game! We have to hurry! If she loses, she'll not only lose whatever was wagered for the duel, but more than likely she'll lose our child in the process! I won't let her go through that!" Illidan called out while running at top speed.

"_Please Marie, hang on! Don't lose, you can't!_"


	85. Chapter 85: Darkness vs Light, Pt 3

**Hello again everybody! Well, since Wednesday, live has improved, I guess, lol. First off, I've been added to a second project at work as I said before, and after much thought, I realized they must trust me to allow me to do this. Lol, I guess they have some kind of faith in me to do it to me. Anyways, that aside, Wednesday evening, I went and picked up my car, again. Apparently, when they hooked the fuel pump back up, they left a connection loose and it came disconnected while I was on the road, thus I lost fuel going to my engine. I got a free oil change out of the deal, which was nice of them. Really, even though I had car trouble, I did like the service they gave me. They were much more informative than the previous mechanics had been, and let me know constantly the status of the car. I really did like how they did things, and although I was miffed over the car breaking down and a bit of dirt on the inside of the door (it's fabric that has dirt up in it…), I was overall happy with their service.**

**Ok, so moving on, writing wise, things are pretty good. I've got plans to work on **_**MtM**_** today since I've focused a lot of my time recently on **_**Another**_**, although I have so many thoughts on **_**Another **_**still. I'm just getting to the good parts, but I must work on **_**MtM**_** if I'm to ever get it out, lol. Thus is the calamity of writing out two stories at once. You have to pick and chose, which sucks, hehe.**

**Last time, Marie and Zell's duel escalated, with Marie summoning her Neo Parshath and taking control of the duel, although Zell continues to chip away at her life points and hurt her body with cruel attacks. Still, Marie is fighting hard, with fierce determination to survive for not only Illidan, but their child as well and to fulfill her promise in saving Zane. Elsewhere, Illidan was letting off steam by destroying the forest. After a talk with Jaden and relaying his fears from the past, Illidan seems to have decided to make peace with Marie. Upon returning to the dorm, he discovered she was dueling Zell, thus making a mad dash to her location. Can Illidan arrive before Marie possibly loses her memories of him, or will he arrive to a much more horrific sight?**

**Wow, thanks for the reviews guys! They just keep coming and coming, which is excellent to see. Alright, I guess with that said, I'll get to answering them.**

**DuelistBlake1852: Yeah, I took some liberties with the Cyberdark monsters. I followed the anime in their effects, mostly due that they made them a bit more dangerous than their actual OCG effects. Lol, starfish-head… But yes, Illidan is rather angry now that he knows Marie completely ignored him. Possibly he might go easy on her if she's unconscious, lol. Yeah, yeah, yeah Yami, I'm sure you want Illidan to go easy on her. After all, you had feelings for her. (/Hears loud gasps.\) True, Illidan should trust more in Marie's abilities, but like any husband, he feels he should protect her from everything bad that comes after her. But yes, he should trust more in her abilities due that she is rather capable of protecting herself, not to mention she is truly stronger than him (in right conditions), hehe. Anyways, thanks for the review, and stay alive Blake. And make sure to dodge those spears!**

**Nathan: LOL! Yeah, Marie knows her place, and it's most definitely with Zell, that much is for sure. Glad you think this is one of my better duels. Eh, I thought of referring to her opponent as just Zell, but again, it's Zane's body. True, he's not in his body, but still, it made me think that Zell wasn't any longer in Zane's body when I tried writing just Zell. But yes, she had an impressive start. True, if she had played Barrier Statue sooner, she may have taken Zell down a peg, but oh well. Thanks for the review!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Good question, will she beat Zell? Heh, yes, only I know. Well, not just me, but real life Marie and ardee do know too, but they're not telling, if they know what's good for them, hehe. I'll PM you the site that I go to for the GX episodes. Yep, Illidan found out what's going on and is on his way. True, what if he can't join in, or get there in time? Thanks about the car. Thankfully it's back to normal now, hehe. Thanks for the review!**

**sirbj: Yeah, Marie's in real trouble now since Illidan found out about her little duel excursion. True, she's ahead in the duel, but how long will that last? Very true, who knows what tricks Zell still has up his sleeve. He is a bit of a sicko and wacko really, although I don't know if he ranks as high as Yami Marik. He might be close. Thanks for the review!**

**Well, that's it for now. Thank you everyone for your reviews. I know I say that every time, but it's true really. I really do enjoy reading them and answering them, go figure, lol. It's always nice to just know what people think of the story, and if they catch the little things I do with card effects.**

**Alright, well, I'm done for today. Hopefully I'll get some work done on **_**MtM**_** today, but if not, oh well. Anyways, thanks for all the support guys. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 85**

Evilly grinning, Zane said "My move, so let's see if you're ready for this!"

Drawing, he grinned evilly at the card, saying "I play the spell Limiter Removal, allowing me to double all of my Machine Type monsters' attack points (800 2 1600/800) (2800 2 5600/800)!"

Both the dark metal machine creatures glowed with a dark glow as their bodies seemed to circulate even more power through them.

"Cyberdark Keel, destroy her pathetic Archlord Zerato with Keel Strike!"

Letting out a loud machine roar, the snake like dragon creature shot it's tail straight at the purple skinned fairy. The tail stabbed the angel right through the gut, who only looked down in shock to see the wound. Almost immediately, an explosion ensued, blowing apart the angel and sending out a wave of smoke.

"No, Zerato!" Marie called out while shielding her face from the smoke.

Sneering once more, Zane coldly said "Don't forget about Keel's effect my little sex slave! You take 300 points of direct damage!"

Out of the smoke came the purple tail that struck Marie in the right shoulder, forcing her to scream out in extreme pain. She instantly fell to one knee once the tail recoiled. Bolts of black electricity instantly filled the air around her, making her scream out in even more pain. The bolts soon ended, leaving her trembling with blood pouring out from her new wound.

"And let's not forget my dear sex slave that your Neo-Parshath loses strength as well since the difference in our points has changed (3700 – 300 3400/3100). At that, I shall end my turn, thus activating Limiter Removal's final effect. It destroys all of my Machine monsters that were affected by it."

Both dark metal machine creatures each let out loud screeches as they shattered and vanished from the field, leaving Zane alone.

"Your move my dear sex slave. That is of course if you have any." (Zane 1700, Marie 2800)

Wincing from the pain she felt from her wounds, Marie slowly stood up, but barely managed to. Panting lightly, she glanced at her deck and back up at Zane.

"_I can't give up! He's counting on me! They're all counting on me!_"

Picking up her new card, she said "That was foolish last turn. Now you're defenseless."

Smirking evilly, Zane remarked "True, I am, but not for long! I play my trap, Cyber Shadow Guardna (?/?)!"

A strange sphere like creature with metallic blade wings, hands, and a few metallic spikes appeared onto the field with a mechanical growl.

"This card acts like a trap, but also a monster. During your turn, it moves to my field, but during your End Phase, it moves back to my Spell/Trap Zone."

Staring at the new creature, Marie eyed it and said "I'd be willing to bet it's more than meets the eye."

"True, but why not come and find out." Zane daringly responded.

Examining her new card, Marie pondered on what to do. "_If I attack, I could be walking straight into whatever trap he has setup with that monster. After all, a monster with questionable points always makes me believe it's got a special ability of some kind._"

Looking at her card once more, she slapped the card to her Duel Disk, saying "I summon Freya, Spirit of Victory (100/100)."

Materializing onto the field in a small flash was a girl with violet colored hair that reached her shoulders with a red flower tucked in by her right ear, wearing a mostly violet and black sleeveless dress that was mid-thigh length with black sleeves that came up to nearly her armpits, large golden hoop rings on her wrists and ankles, and large pink pompoms in each hand.

"With Freya out, all of my Fairy Type monsters get a 400 point boost (100 400 500/100 400 500) (3400 400 3800/3100 400 3500)."

Doing a small cheer, the violet haired girl began to glow with a pink aura. The aura instantly sent a stream towards the powerful looking warrior knight, who let out a soft growl as his own strength increased.

"Neo-Parshath, attack his Cyber Shadow Guardna with Paladin Slash!"

Letting out a battle cry, the powerful angel warrior leaped forward, blades glowing with purification energy.

Smirking at the approaching angel, Zane coolly said "Thanks for attacking. Now I can show you true power of my Cyber Shadow Guardna."

A small drop of sweat slowly streaked down Marie's face upon hearing Zane's words. Sneering at that result, he continued on saying "When you attack Cyber Shadow Guardna, it's attack and defense points are changed to the attacking monster's, meaning you're attacking a monster with the same strength (3800/3500)."

Marie could only gasp in shock as she watched the machine creature glow with a dark aura. It let out a small mechanical roar and reached out with it's blade arms, which struck the powerful angel's midsection while the angel's blades pierced the machine creature's chest. Both exploded suddenly, sending out a cloud of smoke across the field.

"Too bad my little sex slave, you just lost your monster." Zane said with an evil smirk.

Growling with visible frustration, Marie snapped back "Don't count me out yet! Go Freya, show him your Pompom Smash!"

The violet haired young woman instantly smiled and nodded. In blazing speed, she crossed the field and struck Zane hard in the chest with both her pompoms. Zane only smirked at it, but was soon cringing in pain as black electrical bolts began to zap him.

"Is that it?" he asked sarcastically.

Sighing, Marie quickly said "I end." (Zane 1200, Marie 2800)

Sneering at her, Zane calmly drew his card and smirked a bit. "I activate the spell Cyberdark Impact. This card shall change the shape of this duel once more. You see, thanks to it's effect, I return all three of my Cyberdark creatures from the Graveyard to my deck and shuffle."

One by one, the three monster cards slid out of Zane's Graveyard Slot and into his awaiting hand. Taking all three, he placed them into his deck and shuffled and sneered once more.

"Oh yeah, I forgot to mention the best part. I can now bring out the Cyberdark Dragon (1000/1000)!"

Reappearing onto the field in that instant, the large dark metal machine dragon, made up of the three separate machine creatures, roared loudly into view.

"Not good…" Marie lowly grumbled.

"With my Cyberdark Dragon's magnificent return, I can now equip a Dragon once more to it. I choose once more my Diablos, King of the Abyss (2800/1000) (1000 2800 3800/1000)!"

Roaring loudly upon reappearing was the large black dragon with a massive wingspan, powerful clawed hands and feet, and a strange spiked head. Reaching out with lines and it's wings, the large machine dragon wrapped it's wires around the large black dragon and integrated it into it's being. The black dragon howled in pain, but then roared as if it enjoyed it once more.

"Ah yes, and let's not forget the fact that my Cyberdark Dragon gains 100 attack points per a card in my Graveyard. Right now, I have a grand total of 34 cards sitting in my Graveyard (3800 3400 7200/1000)!"

Glowing with a dark aura, the large machine creature roared out loudly as it's strength increased exponentially.

In a commanding voice, Zane cried out "Cyberdark Dragon, attack her pathetic cheerleader with Darkness Strident Blaze!"

Roaring loudly once more, the machine dragon released a stream of dark black energy straight at the violet haired woman, who only looked on in shock.

"You should know that this girl still has some tricks up her sleeve." Marie taunted. "I activate a trap! Go Draining Shield!"

In front of the violet haired woman instantly appeared a golden shield of energy. The incoming black stream of energy struck it, sending out a gust of wind and a small shock wave while the blast ground against the shield.

"Whenever Draining Shield is played, the attack of the incoming monster is negated and it's attack points are added directly to my life points. So thank you very much for this gift Zell." Marie mocked.

The golden shield instantly absorbed the black energy stream. Transforming into a golden stream, the stream shot back to Marie's Duel Disk and instantly poured into it before vanishing.

Glaring daggers at Marie, Zane roughly said "I end my turn for now." (Zane 1200, Marie 10000)

Letting out a small sigh of relief, Marie glanced at her field and then back at her deck. Looking up, she once more glanced at Zane's deck, seemingly counting.

"_He could only have a handful of cards left. My guess right now is he has six to eight cards left. If that's the case, then I know what three are. They're Cyberdark Horn, Cyberdark Edge, and Cyberdark Keel. That leaves three to five cards that I don't know about._"

Closing her eyes, Marie began thinking of the cards Zane had used against her in their first duel, and of the cards she remembered seeing when she watched Illidan's first duel against Zane.

"_He threw out over half of his deck randomly, but that doesn't mean all the cards I remember are gone. If I had to guess, one of the cards would be Power Bond. It would only make since to keep one or two of them in his deck. Also, I'd guess Cybernetic Fusion Support could possibly be left also. Those two cards, together, beat me last time. Could they still be left?_"

Opening her eyes, Marie stared Zane's deck once more. "_Yes, they're in there, I'm sure of it. Can he draw both though? To draw them, he'll need something to pick up two cards. What could it be?_"

Fully refocusing on the duel, she drew her card and examined it. "_No use in worrying about it at the moment. I've got to stall him a bit longer is all._"

"I'll place a card face down and switch Freya to defense."

Taking up a kneeling stance, the small violet haired woman crossed her arms.

"That's it for now." (Zane 1200, Marie 10000)

Drawing quickly, Zane darkly chuckled for a moment and finally showed the card to Marie. "I play this, my Different Dimension Capsule. This spell let's me pick a card from my deck and remove it from play for two of my Standby Phases. After that, I can add it back to my hand."

A strange capsule like tomb slowly rose up from the ground in front of Zane. A card image appeared facing Zane, demonstrating he was placing something in the capsule.

Pulling his deck out, he looked through it before grabbing a card and placing it in his removed from play slot. The card image instantly slid down into the capsule, which sunk into the ground.

"Two turns, that's all you have left my little sex slave." Zane coldly remarked. "In the meantime, it's time I obliterate your defenses. Go, destroy her cheerleader with Darkness Strident Blaze!"

Roaring loudly, the powerful machine dragon took aim and released a stream of dark black energy. The energy easily slammed into the weaker violet haired woman, who cried out in pain before vanishing completely from the field.

"So much for that useless creature." Zane stated.

Growling loudly, Marie quickly shot back "She was not useless! Freya may be gone, but I won't let you win!"

"We'll see." (Zane 1200, Marie 10000)

Picking up a new card, Marie frowned. "I'll set a monster and end my turn." (Zane 1200, Marie 10000)

"_Just a bit longer. I have to hold on just a little longer, that's all. His deck is nearly empty, so the longer I can stall, the better._" Marie silently mumbled to herself.

Upon drawing his new card, Zane sneered as the strange capsule like structure rose up out of the ground and opened.

"Wait, it hasn't been two Standby Phases yet! Why is that thing back already!?" Marie demanded.

Darkly chuckling, Zane picked up the card that slid out of his removed from play slot and turned it towards Marie. "This my little sex slave is what helps guarantee your loss to me. The spell I placed within my Different Dimension Capsule was this, my Card from a Different Dimension. When removed from play, it returns my next Standby Phase and allows us both to draw two cards from our decks. Of course, next turn, Card of Demise's effect kicks in for you, meaning you'll lose whatever you draw."

Simultaneously, the pair picked up two cards and placed them within their left hands. Darkly chuckling, Zane called out "You will fall soon my little sex slave! I activate the spell Power Bond! With this, I can fuse a Machine Type monster together!"

"But you have no monsters you can Fusion Summon…" Marie calmly said as sweat slid down the side of her face.

Smirking, Zane remarked "True, none on the field anyways, but that shall change. I play the spell Cybernetic Fusion Support! With this, I pay half my life points so that I can remove monsters from my Graveyard to Fusion Summon instead! I remove from play my three Cyber Dragons (2100/1600) in order to bring forth my Cyber End Dragon (4000/2800)!"

Black bolts of electricity instantly began striking Zane's body, making him cringe a bit, but not much. Once the bolts ended, he sneered and put his hand over his Graveyard Slot. Slowly, one by one, the three monster cards slid out of Zane's Graveyard Slot and into his hand. Taking all three, he placed them within his removed from play slot and slapped a monster card to his Duel Disk.

Immediately, three shiny silver snake like machine dragons appeared, each roaring loudly. The three began to glow brightly and formed into a singular blinding light. From the light came a three headed machine snake like dragon with massive wings and a long tail. Each head roared loudly, shaking the very forest floor.

"Thanks to Power Bond, my dragon's attack points are doubled (4000 2 8000/2800)."

The three headed dragon instantly began glowing with white energy. Each head roared loudly as the creature spread it's wings, making the forest shake even more.

"Obliterate her pathetic creature with Darkness Strident Blaze my mighty Cyberdark Dragon!"

Letting out a massive roar, the large combination dragon released a stream of jet black energy at the weaker face down card image. The card image instantly shattered, revealing a creature with a red velvet crown, angel wings, white gloves, brown shoes, a blue belt, and a small golden bow appeared onto the field. The remainder of it's body was invisible, making it difficult to tell what the monster truly looked like in the face. Upon being revealed, the creature was shattered into millions of pieces, leaving nothing behind.

"Thanks for doing that Zell." Marie confidently said. "In flipping my monster, I get to draw one new card."

Picking up a card, she placed it in her hand and smirked, but Zane only sneered. "Such foolishness my sex slave. Have you forgotten you're defenseless?"

"Not at all, but I'm the one who should be saying you're foolish. After all, you have not nearly enough life points to survive Power Bond's fatal effect. You should have thought of that." Marie chided.

Sneering once more, Zane calmly replied "True, but we shall see. For now though, you won't be smirking after this. A direct assault from my Cyber End Dragon will most definitely put you out of commission. It's game, set, match my little slave."

Pointing at her, Zane yelled "Direct attack her Cyber End Dragon! Punish her with your Super Strident Blaze!"

Aiming each head at Marie, the three headed dragon roared loudly and fired a blast of pure white energy straight at her. The three blasts instantly combined and formed a large blast.

"_I've got to survive this blast! I know I can! I just have to, for the sake of all those that I care about, I will survive!_" Marie cried out in her mind.

Bracing herself, Marie prepared to take the blast head on. The impact hit her hard, as the searing hot energy struck her, making her skin seem like it was on fire. Gritting her teeth, Marie stood her ground and pushed back against the blast, but she only began to lose ground. Her body was being pushed backwards by the sheer force of the energy. Small rips began forming within her clothing as the pain she felt continued to increase.

After nearly an eternity, the blast exploded, sending out a huge shockwave and throwing Marie backwards five feet and hard into the barrier surrounding the pair. Hitting the barrier, she finally screamed out in extreme pain while her body was fried by the barrier's repulsing power. Both the blast and barrier's force began taking it's toll on her body, with blood gushing from numerous wounds, old and new. Bolts of black electricity also began flashing, sending painful shockwaves through her already battered body.

A minute after being thrown against the barrier, the barrier finally repulsed Marie and threw her to the ground with a sickening thud. Blood instantly began to pour out onto the ground, coating it in the thick coppery substance.

Laughing manically, Zane pointed at Marie, saying "I knew you were weak! You have nearly succumbed to the effects of the Shadow Game! I knew you were too weak to win this duel! You are mine, so take her memories now Shadows!"

Small puddles of black slowly began to spring up from the ground near Marie's prone body. The puddles began forming round strange looking creatures that slowly closed in around her.

"YOU'RE MINE NOW AND FOREVER!" Zane declared.

The puddles instantly moved forward and were about to attack Marie when she suddenly began to stir. With extremely sluggish movement, she rose her head up to glare at Zane, causing the creatures to fade away.

Staring at her in complete shock, Zane sputtered, saying "I… Impossible! You should be unconscious from that, if not dead!"

Still glaring at him, Marie slowly moved her body till she was finally on her hands and knees. She coughed hard, hacking up some blood while her chest heaved up and down quickly, showing signs that she was having great difficulties breathing. Crimson life force continued to pour out of her body onto the ground, staining it in a deep shade of red. Her hair, which was once a beautiful shade of brown, was now matted with red spots from where she had laid on the ground and blood collected into it.

Slowly, she began to attempt to stand and moved into a kneeling position. Pain washed over her face as she finally managed to move into a kneeling position. Shifting her weight to her front leg so she could stand, she winced while attempting to stand up. She began to slowly ascend, but immediately fell back to her knee.

Determination flashed through her eyes as she tried once more to stand, only to stumble and fall back to one knee again. Wheezing loudly, she tried again, only to once more stumble.

With a primal roar, she slowly tried once more, this time actually making it into a standing up position, but she was hunched over, breathing heavily. Blood continued to pool on the ground from her body as she stood there, trying desperately to catch her breath.

In complete and utter shock, Zane uttered "How is it even possible for you to move, let alone stand!?"

Moving to stand up fully, she glared once more at Zane. In a raspy voice, she slowly said "I … won't … stop … till … I've beaten … you!"

Growling with frustration visible, Zane roared "I WILL NOT FALL TO THE LIKES OF SOME SEX SLAVE!"

Calming down, Zane sneered, saying "Besides, you're barely standing. You won't last much longer."

"I wouldn't… count on… it. Power Bond… will… destroy you." Marie rasped out.

Darkly chuckling, Zane slapped a monster card to his Duel Disk. "Not likely. I summon Cyber Kirin (800/800)."

A large silver mechanical dog instantly materialized onto the field and let out a mechanical howl.

"By sacrificing Cyber Kirin, I can reduce the damage I'd take due to a spell effect to zero for this turn. Sorry my little sex slave, but I won't be losing this duel."

With those words, the mechanical dog faded away into golden dust while Zane's body lightly glowed gold, seemingly giving him protection. Marie could only growl lowly under her breath while glaring.

"I end my turn. Come my little sex slave, prepare for the end!" (Zane 600, Marie 2000)


	86. Chapter 86: Darkness vs Light, Pt 4

**Hey there everyone! Well, this weekend wasn't too bad. I saw my grandfather Friday, who was doing pretty decent, although he had a small fever. My grandmother is worried that it will lead back to what he had that put him in the hospital twice in the recent past. We're hoping not, but you never know. Other than that, he was doing pretty well. Ah yes, and Friday, I found out I need to make another trip to get my car worked on… It has a rattling sound in the rear of it that wasn't there before. (/Heavily sighs.\) I hate to make another trip, but it needs fixed. Who knows what they left loose this time… Anyways, I'm due to head back there tomorrow. Tonight though, I'm going to see my grandfather again. The rest of the weekend, nothing really happened, other than my mate got "drunk" Saturday night. Heh, she said she was tipsy… yeah, right, lol. Hilariously, she had only one beer at 5 alcohol rating. Silly cat, she just can't hold her liquor, lol.**

**Writing wise, things are moving along. I've decided the date I'll begin posting **_**Another**_** is this Friday instead. I know, I said last time I'd do it Saturday, but I changed my mind. After all, Saturday is special to me and my mate. So, Friday it is.**

**Btw, I have a little contest or whatever you want to call it. If anyone paid attention to my last chapter or two's comments, you'd note February second is very special to me and my mate. No, it's not Groundhog Day before anyone suggests it… What is so special about this day for me and my mate? If anyone can answer this week, I'll post an extra chapter. So, there's a challenge to get a new chapter, heh.**

**Last time, Marie's fight with Zell raged on, with her taking control for a while before Zell managed to summon both Cyberdark Dragon and Cyber End Dragon. The turn in which her Card of Demise's effect is about to come about, with her having only two face down cards that can't apparently save her from an attack. One way or another, the climatic end is coming, but will Marie manage to get out of this jam with her soul and her child, or will Zell erase her memories, allowing her to become his?**

**And now, time once again for the reviews!**

**Knives91: Yeah, things are getting a bit nasty there. Marie's bleeding to death, much like Zane/Zell. Heh, there might be enough to put in a can, you never know. Thanks for the review!**

**x-knight20: Thanks. It's cool about not being able to read sometimes. Things happen, which I don't mind. Real life takes precedence to everything else. Very true, things are close for Marie, not to mention Zell has both Cyberdark and Cyber End Dragons out. Here's hoping that she does something this turn. Thanks for the review!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Heh, yeah, it nearly did end, but I was at the limit on the chapter, so I continued it to the next chapter. Things are up in the air about what could happen next. You never know, it could go either way, although Marie has to discard her hand this turn, thus not making it a very good case for her to win. Yep, I got my car back, but like I said earlier, I have to take it back again tomorrow. (/Sighs\) Thus is my life, lol. I'll PM this morning about the link. Thanks for the review!**

**Nathan: Eh, I might have, lol. I sometimes do that. Oh well, hehe. True, Illidan is a bit over protective of Marie, but I can see how he would be. He nearly lost her twice now when she was with child, thus he has an urgent need to want to keep her away from harm. Plus, he has always been protective of her, not wanting anything to happen to her. Even though she's technically stronger than him, she doesn't have the instincts to harm someone, thus he feels he needs to do it for her. True, she is holding her own against Zell though, but she is rather hurt too. Yes, the end is near, meaning one way or another, this duel will end and soon. Thanks for the review!**

**sirbj: True, Zell managed to retake the lead. He has two powerful monsters out, while Marie has nothing now, meaning she's in real trouble, especially with her Card of Demise's effect about to kick in. Hopefully Illidan will get there soon… Thanks for the review!**

**Ok, that's it for reviews today. Thank you everyone for your reviews. I enjoyed reading all of them. Hopefully I answered all of them for everyone. To anyone who would like to review, but is shy, feel free to review. It's not like I'll attack you and suck your blood. I'm not a vampire, lol. Well, I have fangs, but big difference… I suppose, lol. But seriously, do feel free to drop me a line. I'll answer any questions, comments, etc, to the best of my abilities without punching a hole through the plot, lol.**

**Thank you everybody again for your reviews. I'm looking forward to the next ones. And don't forget about the question I asked earlier. Here it is once again.**

**What is so special about this day for me and my mate? If anyone can answer this week, I'll post an extra chapter. So, there's a challenge to get a new chapter, heh.**

**Alright, that's it for me. Enjoy the chapter!**

**Chapter 86**

Glaring at Zane, Marie made a movement to draw a card, but coughed hard, hacking up more blood onto the ground below her. Staring at it, her vision suddenly began to blur, and she stumbled a slight bit.

"_I'm so light headed… I don't know how much more of this I can take…_"

Thoughts of surrendering moved into her mind, and of being able to finally lay down on the ground and rest. Instantly, she pushed the thoughts away, screaming in her mind "_No!_ _I have to remember what I'm fighting for here! If I die, or lose my memories, I'll fail everyone! I promised to save Zane, Syrus, and all of the others Zell took! Not to mention, if I fall here, what will become of mine and Illidan's child, and most importantly, what of Illidan? He'll die without me in his life, I know it. I know he's always said he would live on for me, but I know he was lying. It'd be the same if he died. Neither of us could survive without the other, at least not for long._"

Steeling her resolve, Marie glared up at Zane with confidence shining in her eyes. "_I won't stop now! Too many people are counting on me! I will survive and reunite with Illidan, and free Zane and all of the other captured souls!_"

With sure motions, she drew her new card and examined it to find her Duel Spirit. Softly smiling, she could hear the card calling out to her with a mighty roar, as if saying it was time.

"I hate to interrupt your thoughts my little sex slave, but I must remind you that Card of Demise's effect kicks in now. That means you must toss out all of your cards!" Zane declared in a mocking tone.

Looking at her cards, Marie faked hesitating for a moment. Growling loudly, Zane screamed "DO IT NOW! YOU KNOW THE RULES! LOSE AND FOREVER KNOW YOU LOST SLAVE!"

Closing her eyes, she nonchalantly placed the cards into her Duel Disk's Graveyard Slot. One by one, the cards were sucked in, leaving her with an empty hand.

Laughing manically, Zane victoriously said "This duel is done! You are mine sex slave!"

Smirking, Marie weakly said "I wouldn't bet on it."

Sneering, Zane mockingly responded with "Why is that? You have nothing! Look at you, you have two pathetic face down cards that can't protect you. You're finished!"

"A certain young man once told me that a duel wasn't over till the last card is played." Marie calmly said. "Last time I checked, I still had some cards left. True, my face downs can't protect me, but they can help me win."

"I doubt that." Zane arrogantly remarked.

Pointing to her first face down card, she calmly said "See for yourself."

Slowly, the face down card rose up, revealing a strange looking trap, but Zane only gasped in shock at it. Sweat instantly streaked down his cheek as he stared at the card.

"I see you've seen this trap card before. Good, then explaining it will be simple." Marie commented. "I play Disgraceful Charity. Now all the cards I discarded this turn return to my hand. That means all four cards I just dumped into the Graveyard for Card of Demise return."

One by one, four cards slid out of the Graveyard Slot. Once all four were there, Marie picked them up and smirked at Zane. "See Zell, I'm not through with this duel."

Glaring at her, Zane quickly snapped back with "You're still not going to win! Nothing in your pathetic deck can beat me!"

"Absolutely arrogant as always." Marie remarked. "I have something that will beat you. I begin by activating a spell, Celestial Transformation, which allows me to special summon a Fairy Type monster from my hand, but it's attack points are halved. I pick this, The Agent of Creation – Venus (1600 / 2 800/0)."

A fairy with golden skin and blonde hair, as well as golden wings appeared onto the field. She wore a green dress with some gold mixed into it. In front of her were three spheres, one which was blue, another red, and finally a purple one. They were hovering in a triangle like position in front of her body.

"I'm far from through though, for I play Venus's effect! I give up 500 of my life points, allowing me to special summon the monster known as Mystical Shine Ball (500/500) from my deck!"

Instantly, Marie's life points drained a small bit, causing black bolts of electricity to form around her, each zapping her body. She instantly sunk down a bit, but fought to remain standing. With all of her strength, Marie straightened back up and glared at Zane. Once she did, a small sphere of light appeared on the field with some mist circling it.

Full of confidence, her voice rang out "I sacrifice both my monsters to summon the monster that will finish you! Rise up my faithful Duel Spirit, Tyrant Dragon (2900/2500)!"

Roaring onto the field was a dark orange dragon with a massive set of wings, powerful claws, sharp fangs, a strange skin hood around it's face, and a strong tail. The dragon landed in front of Marie and let out a massive roar, showing it's eagerness for battle.

Darkly chuckling, Zane mockingly said "You waste your time to summon that creature? How pathetic my little sex slave! If you wished to lose, you should have said so!"

"I won't lose! Me and Tyrant Dragon will end this darkness you created and free Zane, along with all the others who have suffered at your hands!" Marie boldly stated.

Pointing to her face down, she called out "I activate the trap Tyrant's Rage! This trap is the only trap that can target my Tyrant Dragon directly and will end this duel. First, I have to give up half my life points."

Black bolts of electricity instantly began striking Marie's body repeatedly, making the already numerous wounds and lack of strength even more apparent to her.

"_Please Tyrant Dragon, lend me your strength! Help me survive this so we can end this duel!_" she mentally cried out to the dragon in distress.

Hearing her cry, the dragon softly growled and leapt into the air and shifted till it was finally a top of Marie. Landing onto the ground below, the dragon quickly encircled her and began emitting a dark orange energy from it's body. The energy slowly formed around Marie, which had an instant effect of making her stop quivering from the pain. Slowly, she relaxed a bit and closed her eyes.

"_Thank you Tyrant Dragon. I can feel my strength slowly returning._"

In a dark voice, the dragon replied "_I cannot keep the pain away for long, nor can I heal your wounds. Are you sure you can do this?_"

Opening her eyes, she confidently smiled. "_Yes, I can. I want to save Zane, along with all of the others. I will do this, because I made a promise to myself to help everyone I could. Remember?_"

Softly chuckling, the dragon replied "_I do. I agreed to help you in your promise as well, and to never forsake you. So be it. Please, do be careful though. I don't think Illidan would take well to losing you._"

"_He won't._" she calmly remarked back.

Leaping back into the air, the dragon returned to it's original position in front of Marie and let out a loud roar towards Zane. Zane only smirked evilly, saying "That dragon won't save you, and you know it."

"We'll see about that one Zell! Get ready to meet your end." Marie calmly remarked. "Since I just paid half my life points, Tyrant's Rage is now active! It allows me to select the strongest monster on the field and add it's attack points to Tyrant Dragon!"

"WHAT!?" Zane bellowed in shock.

Smirking, Marie replied "You heard me. Watch as I take the power of Cyber End Dragon and give it to Tyrant Dragon (2900 8000 10900/2500)!"

Roaring loudly, the machine dragon shot a beam of golden energy out of it's back. The energy instantly poured down onto the dark orange dragon, who roared wildly as it's own strength increased into new levels. Glaring at the dark machine creature, the dark orange dragon let out a terrifying roar that shook the entire forest.

"The darkness is about to lift Zell! Once I destroy that dark monstrosity, Zane's soul will be free once more, and you'll be without a body!" Marie declared with a defiant glare.

Sweat poured off of Zane's face as he cried out "Wait, let's talk about this!"

"The time for talk is over Zell. This is the end of the road for you. Farwell." Marie stated. "Tyrant Dragon, end this by destroying that Cyberdark Dragon! Blow it away with Tyrant's Flame!"

Letting out a massive roar, the dark orange dragon released a stream of searing hot orange flames at the dark machine creature. The flames easily melted a hole straight through the machine monster, which let out a thunderous wail of pain. The flames only continued on through the machine dragon and straight towards Zane, and upon impact, picked him up and slammed him into the barrier. Hitting the barrier, Zane let out a massive scream from the tremendous shock of dark bolts of electricity combined with the power of the barrier repulsing him, plus the hot flames that licked his body.

After nearly a minute of grinding against the barrier, Zane's injured body with multiple wounds and burns fell to the ground. Seeing it, Marie declared "It's over. Now leave his body Zell!"

"NOOOO!!!" Zane screamed as suddenly his body was engulfed in a dark black aura. Instantly, a black sphere of energy came out of his back, and Zane's body went slack and fell silent.

Smiling at her achievement, Marie's eyes instantly got heavy and she passed out. She immediately fell toward the ground and landed with a soft thud. Blood pooled under her body from her many wounds, soaking the ground in the crimson liquid.

"_CURSE YOU! I WILL NOT BE DESTROYED LIKE THIS! LET'S SEE HOW YOU DO ONCE I TAKE CONTROL OF YOUR CHILD!_" the sphere screamed out in Zell's voice.

Flashing brightly, the sphere raced straight towards Marie's prone body. The sphere attempted to enter her stomach, but was quickly repulsed by a barrier.

"_NOOOOO!!!_" the sphere screamed out in pain as it slowly began to vanish.

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Running faster than he thought possible, Illidan stopped suddenly. Reaching out with his Shadow Powers, he instantly felt the duel end, but couldn't find either Marie or Zane's energy signature.

"No, come on Marie, let me know where you are!" he called out hysterically.

Concentrating harder, he finally found what he was looking for. "There!" he yelled and began running again.

After a minute or two later, he finally arrived to the sight of the battle. Blood was everywhere, along with several craters. He instantly saw Syrus off to the side, as well as Zane across the battlefield, but most noticeably Marie.

"Oh, by the Gods, don't let me be too late!" he yelled as he moved to her side.

Gently turning her over, Illidan instantly grimaced at the sight of her body. Her school uniform was soaked in dark crimson blood, and the clothing itself displayed the multiple stab wounds and burns she had on her body, plus the ground itself was soaked with her own blood.

Tears instantly sprang from his eyes upon close inspection of the wounds. "MARIE! CAN YOU HEAR ME!?" he quickly yelled.

There was no response, thus Illidan immediately went to work at ripping the uniform top open. "I'm sorry, but I have to look. I need to know how bad it is." he mumbled.

Examining the wounds, he found many were not life threatening, but a few were pretty bad and could become deadly. Closing his eyes, he folded his hands in front of himself and began concentrating on bringing his Shadow Powers forth.

Lowering his hands till he was touching her body softly, he began releasing his Shadow Powers slowly as a healing wave. Keeping his eyes closed, he continued sending out continuous healing waves.

"You know I was never the best healer." he grumbled lowly. Opening his eyes with tender feelings in his eyes, he kindly added "But I will do what I can. Please, just stay with me."

A few minutes after beginning the healing process, Jaden made it to the battlefield and ran to Illidan's side. Staring down at a bloodied Marie, his eyes misted. "Is she…"

"No, she's not, so long as I can help it. I think I made it in time. Her wounds are healing thanks to my power." Illidan responded.

"What about the baby?" Jaden asked with a touch of worry.

Frowning, Illidan lowly mumbled back "I'm not sure… She has a barrier up surrounding the child still, so I can't tell anything about it. I think she used all of her powers to protect it from the battle, hence why Marie is in the shape she is in. If she hadn't, I'm sure that the child wouldn't have made it. Still, I won't know for sure till she drops her barrier."

Nodding, Jaden let out a heavy sigh. Glancing around, he saw both Syrus and Zane nearby. "What about them?"

"No idea." Illidan quickly responded.

Brow furrowing, Jaden asked "You haven't checked them?" 

"Marie's injuries are very serious Jaden. Syrus from what I can tell looks to be in pretty good shape. Zane might be a different story though." Illidan stoically remarked.

"But they could be hurt Illidan!" Jaden interjected. "You should go check on them!"

Ignoring Jaden, Illidan continued concentrating on healing Marie instead. Seeing he was being ignored, Jaden got up and rushed over to Syrus's side. Examining him, he nodded with satisfaction and rushed over to Zane. Finding multiple wounds, he noted that blood was still leaking from some of his wounds.

"ILLIDAN, ZANE IS BADLY WOUNDED!" Jaden said in a panicked voice.

Still ignoring Jaden, Illidan only continued on focusing his powers on Marie. Growling loudly, Jaden ran over to Illidan and punched him in the temple with all of his strength. Illidan instantly rolled onto the ground away from Marie from the blow.

Getting up, Illidan angrily glared at Jaden, shouting "WHAT WAS THAT FOR!? CAN'T YOU SEE I'M TRYING TO HEAL MARIE!?"

"YOU JERK, QUIT BEING SO SELF CENTERED AND REALIZE ZANE IS DYING! IF YOU DON'T HURRY UP AND CLOSE UP HIS WOUNDS, HE'LL BLEED TO DEATH!" Jaden angrily shot back.

Growling loudly, Illidan countered with "I don't give a damn about him Jaden! He nearly killed Marie! If I don't act quickly, Marie could die from her own wounds! She is my first and only priority at the moment!"

"You'd actually let Zane die to save Marie?" Jaden asked in total disbelief. Turning away from Illidan, Jaden coldly said "You're not the person I thought you were."

"And what does that mean!?" Illidan hotly asked.

Watching Jaden turn to face him, Illidan was slightly shocked to see a face full of anger and a hint of hatred in Jaden's eyes. He was shaking a bit, as if trying hard to keep from exploding. With clenched fists, he yelled "You know that Marie would never let Zane die!"

Sighing heavily, Illidan looked away towards the ground. "_He's right... Marie would save anyone she could, even if it was her worst enemy._"

"If you want to let Zane die, then fine, but understand that I will never forgive you for it!" Jaden angrily said, breaking Illidan from his thoughts. "And I know for a fact Syrus won't either! Do what you want Illidan, but you'll be the one that has to live with the guilt of knowing you could have saved him!"

Feeling ashamed of himself, Illidan sighed once more and walked towards Zane. Once past Jaden, he stopped with his back to Jaden. "I'm sorry. I was worried about Marie." he apologetically remarked.

Sighing himself, Jaden turned to Illidan's back and replied "It's alright. I just thought it was extremely cruel of you to save Marie, but not offer to lift a finger to save Zane's life."

"You're right though Jaden." Illidan admitted. "Marie would have saved him if she could. And I will do the same."

Moving forward, he kneeled down in front of Zane and began checking his wounds. After a moment, he summoned up his healing powers once more and began pouring waves of healing energy into Zane's body.

Nearly ten minutes after starting, Illidan stopped and motioned for Jaden to come to his side. Jaden obeyed and examined Zane's body.

"I've closed up his major injuries. He won't bleed out, but he still needs some healing. Jaden, I know this is kind of an odd time to learn, but I'm going to teach you how to heal him." Illidan calmly said.

Frowning, Jaden asked "How can I heal him? I thought the Shadow Powers of my Shadow Charm were limited?"

"True, but you are capable of healing a person. It's not that hard, once you get the hang of it of course." Illidan said with a small smile. "First, place your palms on Zane's chest."

Obeying, Jaden placed his palms flatly on Zane's chest and awaited instructions. "This next part is hard. You have to concentrate on changing your Shadow Magic from a destructive energy to a healing energy. The trick is you have to send out your Shadow Magic in very low levels. Once you do that, you'll slowly be able to change the energy into a healing wave. The waves will slowly heal a person. It takes lots of discipline to do this, just so you know."

"But I don't know if I can." Jaden protested.

Softly smiling, Illidan nodded, saying "I know, but you should try. It takes a certain knack to learn how to heal a person. Even though I was the one who taught Marie, it was much harder for me to learn to heal. In fact, it took me at least a few months to finally be able to heal simple scratches."

"Months!? I don't have months, and I don't want to hurt Zane either!" Jaden quickly said.

Smiling, Illidan nodded. "I know, but trust me, I know you can do this. Your Shadow Pendant should lower the level of your destructive wave, thus making it easier for you. You may not have the energy to heal him completely, but you can help at the least. Do you wish to try?"

Thinking for a moment, Jaden finally nodded. "Yes, I'll try. Anything to help him out."

"Good. Now, go ahead and try and pour out your Shadow Magic, but remember, send out weak energy. Then once you begin, try concentrating on turning them into healing waves." Illidan instructed.

Letting out a large sigh, Jaden began concentrating and slowly poured out small amounts of his energy. The energy slowly began to transform into a healing wave and washed over Zane's body. The wounds Illidan had already began healing began to continue closing, but very slowly.

"That's the way Jaden. If you could, keep doing that till you can't anymore. Don't push yourself too hard though."

Jaden lightly nodded, seemingly very deep in concentration. Standing up, Illidan went back to Marie's body and began healing her once more.

Nearly an hour after arriving, Illidan finally stopped healing her body. Panting lightly, he softly smiled, saying "Well, that's all I can do for now."

Glancing over at Jaden, he saw that he was still going at it, but was nearly drained. "Jaden, that's enough for now." he calmly said.

Stopping what he was doing, Jaden started panting hard, seemingly out of breath. He stood up, only to fall back down. Softly chuckling at him, Illidan got up and walked over to him, saying "You used a bit too much of your Shadow Powers I'm guessing."

"Possibly." Jaden mumbled between pants.

Looking the three fallen victims over, Illidan smoothly said "Let's get them back to the Academy."

Nodding, Jaden went to Syrus and picked him up and brought him over to where Zane laid while Illidan picked up Marie and moved to the same spot. Tossing Marie over one shoulder and Zane over his other, Illidan began the long trudge back to the Academy with Jaden trailing behind with Syrus on his back.


	87. Chapter 87: Punishment and Preparing

**Hey there everyone. Well, yesterday was a pretty decent day. I saw my grandfather, who was doing well, other than he was a bit sleepy. My grandmother said he stayed up to 3 in the morning the night before, so both were exhausted, unfortunately, lol. Anyways, other than that, both were well.**

**Well, everyone that guessed at what is so special about the second of February was somewhat correct, so I'll give it to you all. Saturday (the second) is mine and my mate's anniversary of when we began courting (dating). We started back in 2001, right when we were seniors in high school. It's been seven fun filled years, and I still feel the same as I've always felt for her. We've had bumps in the road, but all around, we've had a very fun time. Heh, so many good times…**

**At any rate, congrats to Nathan and Raymond Barrett to guessing right. You guys were right, although our actual wedding anniversary isn't till August 18****th****, but I didn't say you had to be specific, lol. So, this chapter is dedicated to the two of you.**

**Ok, now let's do some reviews!**

**Knives91: Lol, really strong stuff? I wish some people were made of that stuff too. That way I could slash them more than normal… I mean they'd live longer! Yeah, that's what I meant… Yep, another villain down. Heh, no rest for the wicked is right, hehe. Thanks for the review!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Yes, Illidan's behavior is a bit disturbing I suppose. Marie did win at least. That sucks that the link didn't make it. I suppose I could email it to you maybe. That would work hopefully. Thanks for the review!**

**Nathan: LOL! I figured I may have gave it away, heh. Yes, she turned the tables and won it out with the help of Tyrant Dragon. Wow, you got the symbolism too! Very nicely done. I wondered if anyone would catch that or not, lol. Thanks for guessing the right thing, and for the review!**

**pink-kiss-candy: Yep, hehe. Ah, that sucks that your inbox didn't tell you what was going on. Nah, I won't suck your blood. Hell, I won't even slash you for it, lol. I'm in a generous mood I suppose, hehe. Thanks for the review.**

**Raymond Barrett: Yep, Marie won. Nah, I didn't want Marie to lose that battle. Heh, a zombie Marie with no memories of Illidan would suck. Yes, you got things right about our anniversary, so congrats. Thanks for the review!**

**JudaiAsuka-fan: Yep, Marie won and Zell is gone. I figured I might scare a few people by having him try to enter the baby. You know, your worst enemy raised up in your own child would suck. And yes, Jaden can heal now, so go him! Thanks for the review!**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Heh, yeah, car trouble sucks, lol. She might be alright, hopefully. Yes, Zell is gone… Thanks for the review!**

**sirbj: Heh, why is it is so surprising that Marie won? She's strong. Yep, Tyrant Dragon helped her out. Heh, I really liked the concept on the Tyrant Rage card myself. It was the only way I really could think for her to beat Zell head on. LOL! Yeah, it'd be nice if it was real, and if they had good anime cards for OCG. Thanks for the review!**

**Ok, that's it for today. Thanks everyone for the reviews! I hope you all enjoy this special chapter I've put out. I will give you all this much of a hint on the story. The end is nearing, so be prepared.**

**Alright, I'm done for today, so enjoy!**

**Chapter 87**

Slowly, Marie began to wake and instantly realized she was no longer standing, but laying down. She also noticed she wasn't on the ground either, but instead on a soft bed, which she quickly realized was her own bed. Her eyes finally fluttered open to glance around. She immediately saw Illidan staring down at her with a warm smile.

Softly smiling back, she mumbled "Hello."

"Hello to you too." Illidan said with a soft voice. "How are you feeling?"

Thinking for a moment, she finally said the first thing that came to mind. "Like a couple of monsters decided to use me for a punching bag. What time is it?"

"Stuck in the past, now are we?" Illidan teasingly asked.

Lightly chuckling, Marie replied "I guess so. Seriously, I feel much better. What time is it really?"

"It's afternoon; you've been out of it for two whole days. I was beginning to wonder if you'd ever wake up."

"Very funny." she mumbled in response. Suddenly, she jerked the covers up and began feeling her stomach. "Is our …"

"From what I can tell, our child is fine." Illidan interjected with reassurance. "Your barrier seemed to have protected it, although the barrier remains intact and I can't figure out anything else."

Letting out a small sigh of relief, Marie closed her eyes. Her stomach immediately lightly glowed from the reaction. Opening her eyes, she placed a hand on her stomach again and softly smiled.

"She's fine." she mumbled with a relieved look.

"She?"

Smiling, Marie warmly replied "Yes, she. I can sense that it's a girl already. I hope I didn't spoil your hopes of having a boy."

"No, it's not that. I'm just surprised you can sense the baby's sex already. Most people in the nomads I was with couldn't figure it out till after nearly six months or so." Illidan admitted.

"Well, I can sense our child, and she is fine. I guess my barrier did the trick."

Nodding, Illidan smiled, saying "Yes, I suppose so."

Sitting up in bed, Marie looked down at her lap and sighed lightly. In a humbled voice, she mumbled "I'm sorry…"

Sighing himself, Illidan sat down on the bed beside of Marie. Putting a comforting arm around her shoulders, he kindly said "It's alright."

Somewhat shocked, Marie craned her neck around to look at Illidan's face. Shrugging his arm off, she placed her palm on his forehead and frowned. "Are you feeling alright?"

Lightly chuckling, he nodded and said "I'm fine. I'm alright with what you did."

Exasperated, Marie stared wide-eyed at Illidan, saying "But you were so mad at me about possibly doing this! Now after I've done it, you're alright with what I did!?"

Gently running his hand through her silken brown locks, Illidan lightly nodded. "I'm fine with it. All that matters to me now is you're alive, and our daughter is too."

Frowning, Marie turned her body around to face Illidan completely and said "I don't understand."

"I came to the realization that you were being loyal to Zane." he calmly explained. "You felt as a friend you should help Zane. Thinking back on it, I realize that I was trying to keep you from displaying that loyalty. I was asking you to sacrifice friendship for your own wellbeing, and that wasn't fair of me."

Letting out a small sigh, he softly smiled and added "Besides, I realize now that I can't always protect you, no matter how badly I want to. You can protect yourself, that much I know for sure. I've known forever, but it's been hard for me to accept it."

Lifting her chin up to look him in the eye, Illidan smiled, saying "I love you Marie, with all my heart and soul. I'm just happy that you are safe."

Leaning in, Illidan gave her a light feathery kiss before he began to pull back. Instead of pulling back, Marie reached up and pulled him in closer and kissed him long and deep. After a minute, the two came up for air and smiled at one another.

"So, you forgive me?" she asked innocently.

Frowning, Illidan replied "Somewhat. I have to punish you though for disobeying."

"WHAT?!" she squeaked out. "You're kidding, right?"

Calmly, he replied "I don't jest my lovely wife. You will be punished according to the crime."

"And what, exactly, is my crime?" she timidly asked.

"Disobeying your husband and endangering your life, along with our child's." he flatly responded.

Bristling up, she growled out "You told me that what I did was alright, but now you're punishing me! Why you…"

Stopping, she softly began chuckling. Smirking at him, she remarked "You're quoting that fan fiction story you liked so much, aren't you?"

Mischief twinkled in Illidan's eyes, as he huskily asked "Why whatever are you talking about? Don't you remember, it's time for your punishment."

Quickly leaping on top of her and pinning her to the bed, Illidan kissed Marie hard and pulled back to look into her eyes. Lightly smiling, she said "I suppose I deserve what's coming to me."

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A few weeks later, Syrus was walking alone in the woods back towards the Ra Dorm when he heard something creeping up behind him. Stopping in the middle of the path, he quickly turned around to find Hinata shyly looking away.

Unsure of himself, Syrus asked "Hinata, why are you following me?"

Looking at the ground with a light blush spreading across her face, Hinata finally spoke up in a small voice. "I… I wanted to thank you for... for finding me."

"Oh, that. It was no problem Hinata." Syrus cheerfully responded.

Softly smiling back, Hinata lowly mumbled in a whisper "I… I wanted to… ask you… something."

Barely hearing her, Syrus lightly frowned and asked "What did you want to ask?"

Shyly looking at the ground as if it was the most interesting thing in the world, she quickly said in a very low whisper "Wouldyouliketogooutwithme!?"

"Huh?" Syrus asked. "What did you just ask?"

Cringing at the thought of asking again, Hinata started to turn away, only to be stopped by Syrus putting a kind hand on her shoulder. Turning to look up, she saw that he had a kind expression, plus he was lightly blushing. Blushing even deeper herself, Hinata immediately moved her eyes to the ground, hoping to get out of Syrus's sight.

"I think I know what you just asked." he slowly said. Taking a big gulp, Syrus croaked out "Would you like to go out with me?"

Instantly, the shy look faded from Hinata, who blushed even deeper. With a slow nod, she replied quietly "Yes."

Smiling, Syrus offered his hand to Hinata, who looked at it with a deep blush. After a moment, she finally took it in her hand and the two walked back towards the dorms in complete silence, each simply enjoying the others company.

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"Hard to believe the year is almost over." Marie softly said to Illidan.

Laying behind her in bed with his arms encircling her in a warm embrace, Illidan softly smiled, saying "Yeah, it is. The last few months have been peaceful ones at the least."

"Very true, which I'm thankful for."

Moving his hands to rub her stomach, Illidan kissed the back of her neck, saying "Soon, this little one will be with us."

"Not for six or seven months though." she quickly replied.

Lightly chuckling, he remarked "True. I guess we'll have a little bit of peace till then."

Snuggling back into Illidan, Marie contently sighed and closed her eyes. After a moment, she finally reopened them and said "You know, the Graduation Duel is coming up."

"Yeah, Chancellor Shepherd mentioned that to me. Apparently, Jaden will get to pick an opponent this year." Illidan retorted.

"Who do you think he'll pick?"

Thinking for a moment, Illidan finally replied "I don't know. He can duel anyone on the island, so it's hard to tell. Maybe he'll rematch with Chazz."

"Doubtful." Marie sleepily said.

Kissing her once more on the neck, Illidan yawned, saying "Whoever it is will have their hands full."

"Uh huh…"

Slightly smiling, Illidan glanced down to see Marie was already almost asleep. Sighing happily, he snuggled in closer to her and lazily closed his own eyes.

"I love you Marie." Illidan whispered gently into her ear.

In a faint murmur, Marie replied "I love you too Illidan."

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The next day, Illidan was talking with Chancellor Shepherd in the Chancellor's office when Jaden suddenly walked in.

Both Illidan and the Chancellor stopped chatting immediately. Smiling, the Chancellor warmly said "Jaden, it's good to see you."

Returning the smile, Jaden replied "Hey, good to see you too Chancellor Shepherd. Hey there Professor Illidan."

"Hello Jaden." Illidan calmly acknowledged.

"So, what brings you here Jaden?" the Chancellor asked.

Smiling, Jaden remarked "I've come to tell you my choice for the Graduation Duel."

Brightening up a bit, the Chancellor asked "And who might your opponent be?"

"I had one question first before I say. You said I could duel anyone on the island, right?" Jaden eagerly asked.

Nodding in reply, the Chancellor added "Anyone on this island is open for your choice."

"Sweetness!" Jaden enthusiastically replied. "My choice is easy then. I wish to duel Professor Illidan!"

"Huh?" both Illidan and the Chancellor asked in shock.

Smiling once more, Jaden excitedly said "I want to duel you Professor Illidan for the Graduation Duel."

Frowning, the Chancellor asked "Are you sure? I thought you would be dueling a student, not a teacher."

"I'm very sure! I definitely want to duel Professor Illidan." Jaden repeated.

Turning to Illidan, the Chancellor asked "Do you have a problem with this?"

Allowing a smile to cross his face, Illidan shook his head, replying with "No, I have no problems with this duel. In fact, I'm kind of excited about it."

Sighing slightly, the Chancellor finally smiled, saying "Very well, then I'll make the announcement today. Next Friday, the two of you will duel it out in the Graduation Duel."

"Thanks Chancellor, you're the best!" Jaden happily said. Turning to Illidan, Jaden added "I'll see you at the duel Illidan!"

Smiling, Illidan responded "Yes, you will. Till then."

"Later guys." Jaden said and turned around and left the room.

Lightly chuckling, the Chancellor remarked "That boy, he sure knows how to pick his battles."

"He sure does." Illidan calmly added.

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The following Wednesday, the school was called into the auditorium. There, with all the students gathered up, the Chancellor called order to the assembly.

Smiling, the Chancellor said "Students, I'm happy to announce the results of this year's self titled Dorm Wars. I first of all commend all of you for the work you've done this year. Each of you have put forth your best effort, and it shows in the stats between the three dorms."

Smirking, Crowler whispered to Bonaparte "That trip is as good as ours!"

"Oui, oui Monsieur!" Bonaparte replied.

Nearby, Izumi lightly giggled, getting Dr. Satyr to ask "Problem Izumi?"

Shaking her head quickly, she smiled, saying "Just thinking about how much fun the Bahamas will be."

"Ah, sí, it will be wonderful. That is if we won." Dr. Satyr remarked.

"Of course we won." Izumi playfully replied with a small punch to his shoulder.

Gripping Marie's hand, Illidan whispered "Here is the moment of truth."

"Yep, to see if all our work really paid off or not." she quietly replied.

Smiling at all the students and teachers, the Chancellor warmly said "Now, for the results of the Dorm Wars. The dorm that won this year by only a slight margin, as in like five points, was… Slifer Dorm!"

All of the Slifer Red students instantly stood up and began cheering loudly. Many hugged, some gave high fives, and others patted one another on the back. Both Illidan and Marie smiled great big at the results and hugged one another.

"We did it!" Marie congratulated Illidan.

"Yes, we did. I can hardly believe it." he happily replied.

Smiling at the students' reaction, the Chancellor cleared his throat, saying "The Slifer Dorm shall receive their reward as promised earlier this year. All of you will be going to the Bahamas in one month, and shall spend two luxurious weeks. This entire trip is paid for by the school's owner. All you have to do is come packed up and prepared to leave. Congratulations once more Slifer Red Students! You've all earned it!"

Grumbling to himself, Crowler crossed his arms, saying "This sucks."

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"Illidan, watcha doing?" Marie asked.

Sitting at a large table, Illidan had his deck scattered out. "Just working on my deck."

"You're preparing still? Haven't you done this every night since last week?" she asked while stifling a yawn.

"Uh huh…" he simply replied without looking up.

Frowning, she said "Tomorrow is the duel honey. I think it's more than ready."

"I need my deck to be in top form to beat Jaden." Illidan remarked while still ignoring Marie's presence.

Lightly growling at being ignored, she whined "Come to bed."

"I will in a while." Illidan absently replied.

Placing her hands on her hips, Marie prepared to sound off on him, but stopped and smirked devilishly. Turning around, she walked into the pair's bedroom and closed the door, leaving Illidan to his deck.

Continuing to concentrate hard on his deck, Illidan didn't hear Marie return five minutes later. She softly padded up to him and asked "Still working on it?"

Not even looking up still, Illidan nodded.

"So, you have no time to play, do you?" she purred.

Furrowing his brow at Marie's words, Illidan glanced up and noticed she was wearing a sexy chocolate colored satin chemise with the outline of a thong coming through the fabric. Setting his card down instantly, he stared at her, taking in the way the fabric clung tightly to her breasts and how he could just make out the distinct outline of her panties. Continuing to stare, he noted how well the fabric accented her curves greatly. Immediately, Illidan felt the heat rising throughout his body, noticeable in his lower extremities.

"I see I finally have your attention." Marie purred with lust pouring out of her eyes.

Slyly smiling, Illidan held up his hands and said "I concede, I'm done with my deck tonight."

"Good." she said with a silky voice. Pulling out a pair of fuzzy white and black spotted hand cuffs from behind her back, she quickly strapped them onto him before he could react.

"I'm going to have to punish you." she said in a husky voice.

Feeling his mouth go dry, Illidan licked his lips and smiled, saying "Let the punishment begin."

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"Jaden, what are you doing up still? It's midnight for crying out loud!" a sleepy eyed Syrus said with a mighty yawn.

Stacking his cards together, Jaden smiled. "I'm working on my deck Sy."

"Still?" an exasperated Hasselberry asked from the top bunk of Jaden's bed with heavy eyes.

"Yep, still am. I want my deck perfect for tomorrow." Jaden happy replied while spreading his cards out once more.

Frowning, Syrus mumbled "Jaden, you need to get some rest. You've worked on your deck since you told Chancellor Shepherd your choice last week. Give it rest already."

"Private Truesdale is right Serg. You need some R and R before tomorrow's duel, so hit the sack and get forty winks." Hasselberry added.

Thinking for a moment, Jaden finally remarked "Eh, I think I'll pass. I want to look at my deck one more time."

Both Hasselberry and Syrus sweat dropped at Jaden's words. Throwing his arms up in the air in surrender, Syrus cried out "I give up."

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"At last, it's ready." Jaden calmly said with a smile. Placing his deck within it's holder, he stood up and stretched. Glancing at the clock, he saw he only had thirty minutes before his duel with Illidan.

Smiling, he remarked "And not a moment too soon. Man, this is going to be one sweet duel."

Grabbing his Duel Disk and deck holder, Jaden quickly left his room and moved to the front of the dorm to surprisingly see Illidan waiting.

"Illidan…" he mumbled. Smiling, he called out "Professor Illidan, I didn't expect to see you before the duel."

"I know, but I thought I'd walk with you. Of course, that is if you don't mind." Illidan calmly said.

Lightly chuckling, Jaden smiled back. "Nah, I don't mind."

Nodding, Illidan quietly led the way. After leaving sight of the Slifer Dorm, he smiled at Jaden, saying "You've grown tremendously this year Jaden."

"Thanks." Jaden quickly replied. "I thought my height had gone up."

Chuckling, Illidan shook his head, saying "Not your height silly. I'm talking about how you've handled yourself. Jaden, to do the things you've done at such a young age is amazing. I know me and Marie are sort of the only family you have left, so I wanted to tell you this."

Turning to face Jaden, Illidan placed both hands on Jaden's shoulders and said "We're very proud of you."

Softly smiling, Jaden blushed lightly and replied "Thank you Illidan. You and Marie are great. You're not like parents, but you are at the same time. I'm happy to be your guys' descendant."

Smiling back, Illidan lightly said "You've done great things Jaden. Remember, we'll always consider your family, so never feel you can't come to us over anything."

"Right." Jaden remarked with a nod.

Looking towards the main campus building, Illidan said "Well, we'd better get going. The duel starts soon."

"Race you there!" Jaden called out as he went rocketing towards the building.

Frowning, Illidan raced after Jaden, yelling playfully "You cheater!"

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"Welcome students to this year's Graduation Duel!" the Chancellor announced with pride.

All of the students settled into their seats and turned their eyes to the Dueling Ring. Seeing he had their attention, the Chancellor smiled once more and gripped the microphone a bit more.

"This year's duel will be between Jaden Yuki, this year's top dueling student, and Professor Illidan Stormrage, headmaster of the Slifer Dorm!"

The students all cheered at the announcement. "Now then, will both contestants come forward." the Chancellor commanded.

Walking onto the stage, both Jaden and Illidan met in the middle where the Chancellor stood.

Smiling at the two, the Chancellor said "I congratulate the both of you for the accomplishments you've each made this year. I'm very proud of both of you."

Nodding to the Chancellor, both smiled and simultaneously said "Thanks."

"Now, exchange hand shakes and shuffle one another's deck." the Chancellor commanded.

Shaking Jaden's hand, Illidan smiled, saying "Good luck Jaden."

"You too Professor Illidan! Let's have a good game." Jaden responded.

Exchanging decks, both shuffled till finally satisfied. Once done, the two placed them within their Duel Disks.

Seeing this done, the Chancellor called out "Duelists, take your place!"

Moving into position, both Illidan and Jaden stared one another down. Getting off of the stage and into his seat, the Chancellor called out "Let the duel commence!"

Both Jaden and Illidan instantly activated their Duel Disks. Each Duel Disk lit up and fully extended. Together, the two drew their first five cards, saying "Game on!"


	88. Chapter 88: Past vs Future, Pt 1

**Hey everyone! Well, I got my car fixed yesterday. The problem was what I figured it was. It was a heat shield around my exhaust that was rattling due that they didn't get it seated right last time. The dealership I had taken my car to this summer did the same thing. Oh well, at least my car is back to normal, and it has most definitely stopped rattling. Other than forcing myself to get up and let my mate lay in bed, things are cool.**

**On my writing, things are good. I'm on target to still release **_**Another**_** starting Friday, which is good. If anyone is interested in an Inuyasha fic, feel free to check it out. It'll be my first full fledged one, so we'll see how it turns out. Feh, my mate asked me if I would make a sequel, in which I growled back stop making me think about three stories, lol. As for **_**MtM**_**, it's moving along too, with me and ardee working about on it.**

**Last time, Marie and Illidan made up over what she did to save Zane. In the process, Syrus and Hinata started going out, the Slifer Dorm won the Dorm Wars, and the Graduation Duel has finally come. This year, Jaden has been selected to have a duel, and his pick of an opponent was a clear one to him: Illidan. With Illidan and Jaden both well prepared for this duel, the question is, who will win in a confrontation between the two?**

**Alright, moving on, time for reviews!**

**Knives91: Thanks about the dueling pleasure. LOL! I suppose they are feeling frisky. Heh, they have a house away from the dorm, so no worries. Thanks for the review.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Yeah, true, the Graduation Duel is normally reserved for students graduating, but I figured it could also be for the highest ranked duelist in the school too. Plus, like you said, Jaden did save the world, so he could have special privileges, lol. Eh, that sucks, so I'll try a PM or an email, maybe both just to make sure. LOL! Yeah, I figured it wouldn't be too big a surprise when Illidan and Jaden were set to duel. Thanks for the review!**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Heh, yeah, Jaden vs. Illidan was always in the makings. Yep, the child is a girl. Lol, yeah, he'll be super protective of her, especially when she gets old enough to date, hehe. Thanks for the review!**

**Nathan: Yep, it's an anniversary, just one of us dating. Heh, yeah, you can't go wrong by just saying anniversary, hehe. No problem for the chapter dedication. I didn't figure anyone would be surprised by Jaden's choice of Illidan for his duel. Why not the Chazz? (/Stifles chuckle at thought of Jaden bothering with Chazz.\) Thanks for the review!**

**sirbj: Yeah, we're finally up to Illidan vs. Jaden. Heh, true, anyone who didn't see it I would be surprised and shocked, lol. True, hopefully the two of them can duel to their best. LOL! Everyone thought it would be a boy, but it shouldn't be too big a shocker I suppose. Remember, the first child Illidan and Marie had in their past lives was a girl, so maybe a little repeat in history, hehe. Yes, live with it, lol. Heh, rooting for both helps I suppose, lol. Thanks for the review!**

**pink-kiss-candy: Well, that sucks. At least you know now. Thanks for the happy anniversary wishing, and thanks for the review!**

**Well, that's it for today. Thank you all for your reviews. I enjoyed reading what everyone thought of the past chapter. Also, thanks to the person who added my story to their favorites. I didn't catch the name, and I suck at remembering, but thank you for the add nonetheless. Well, this story isn't going to beat my record of reviews, but nonetheless, I'm happy with it. Heh, it has less hits, yet almost the same amount of reviews as **_**ToP**_**. That's an accomplishment on it's own, one that I'm very proud of and thankful for from everyone.**

**I guess I should be truthful with you all. This story is going to end in the very near future. Not this week, but next I suppose. I know, that's not specific, lol, but it's better I suppose, hehe. But truthfully, next week, this story will rap up. It's been great thus far to see what everyone has said in their reviews, and I thank each of you for it. Without the support that you guys give me, who knows how far I'd have taken this series. Probably not far, lol. Thank you all for continuing to review. I really do enjoy reading your reviews, and they encourage me to continue to write onwards. I only hope that everyone enjoys the rest of this story, and the sequel. The next sequel is the end of this series though, which does sadden me, but I've come to realize it has to end sometime or another. For now though, like one person said, I'm just riding the wave baby! I know, that made no sense…**

**Thanks for the reviews guys! Enjoy the chapter!**

**Chapter 88**

"Jaden, since you threw down this challenge, it's your choice on who goes first." Illidan commented.

Nodding, Jaden smiled and without hesitation replied "You can go first Professor Illidan."

Frowning, Illidan pondered on why Jaden passed. "_He knows I prefer to go second. Heh, I guess Jaden has been studying my duels._"

Drawing his sixth card, Illidan examined it before slapping it horizontally to his Duel Disk. "I start by summoning my Magician's Valkyrie (1600/1800) in defense mode."

A young female mage with long chestnut colored hair that reached her mid-back that wore a mostly light blue with some light purple like dress and an odd looking light blue mage's hat appeared onto the field. She held a scepter in her right hand that looked like a ram's horn on the end of a stick that had three green jewels on each side. The scepter itself was a light grey. She took a one kneed stance with her arms crossed.

"Next, I play this, my Quick Summon spell card. With this, I can Normal Summon another monster, so I pick another Magician's Valkyrie (1600/1800) in defense."

Appearing beside of the first female mage was a mirror image of the mage in a defensive stance. Both nodded to one another and smiled, seemingly happy to see one another.

"To end, I place one card face down. I'll let you pick up from here Jaden." (Illidan 8000, Jaden 8000)

"Very skillful play for a first turn." Bastion commented with an impressed voice.

Smiling, Mariah remarked "But of course. Uncle Illidan is the best, and leaves nothing to chance."

"Jaden…" Syrus murmured.

Seeing Syrus was troubled, Hinata gave his hand a small squeeze. "He'll be alright, I know it." she quietly whispered to Syrus.

Interrupting the moment, Hasselberry said "Buck up soldier, the Serge isn't in trouble. Well, at least not yet."

Groaning, Chazz snapped "Shut up commando boy! I should be the one Jaden is dueling, not a teacher."

"So you could lose again?" Alexis questioned with a smirk.

Giggling at Chazz's growls, Marie turned her attention back to the duel. "_Nice first move Illidan. Just stay alert. Jaden is capable of anything, just like yourself._"

Back on the field, Jaden smiled while drawing. "Sweet first move Teach, but I'm not done for yet. Check this out, I summon Elemental Hero Bubbleman (800/1200)!"

Rising up onto the field in a swirl of bubbles was a warrior in mostly light blue spandex with some darker blue, a large white cape, a couple of tanks on his back, and a water hose like blaster attached to his right hand.

"Since Bubbleman is all alone on the field, I'm allowed to draw two new cards from my deck."

Picking up two cards, Jaden smiled and showed one of the new cards. "Next, I activate the spell Graceful Charity! Now I can draw three cards, but I have to place two in the Grave when I'm done."

Grabbing another three cards, Jaden studied his new cards for a moment before picking two from his hand and placing them within his Graveyard Slot. "I toss Elemental Hero Avian and Hero Kid. Next up, I activate Pot of Greed! This spell let's me pick up another two cards."

Quickly adding them to his hand, Jaden smiled great big. Frowning at this, Illidan pondered silently over the move.

"_Jaden has drawn seven cards this turn so far. Hmm, what could he be up to?_"

Smirking, Jaden continued on and called out "Alright, I hope you're ready for this card combo, cause it's a dozy! I'll start with O – Over Soul! Thanks to this spell, I can bring an Elemental Hero back from my Graveyard to the field, and my choice is Avian (1000/1000)!"

Rising up onto the field in a small swirl of wind was a warrior in a green fur suit with large white wings. On his left hand was a reddish claw, and his chest was covered in grey fur. He wore a green mask that covered his eyes, but revealed his mouth. Taking up an offensive pose, he stretched out his wings, letting a few feathers fall from them.

"Next, I play the spell R – Righteous Justice! This spell works like this. For every Elemental Hero on my field, I can destroy the same number of spell/trap cards. Since there is only one card on the field, I can smash it!"

Instantly, a red beam shot out from the spell card, hitting it's mark on Illidan's field. The face down card instantly flipped up, revealing it to be a trap.

Lightly growling, Illidan muttered "My Magic Cylinder…"

"Good thing I took that out." Jaden commented with a goofy smile. "Now then, moving on, I play the spell E – Emergency Call! Now I can pull an Elemental Hero from my deck and add it to my hand, and my choice is Elemental Hero Clayman!"

Pulling his deck out, Jaden sorted through it till finally he showed the desired card. Placing his deck back, he placed the monster within his hand and smiled.

"Finally, I play the spell H – Heated Heart, allowing me to raise the attack points of one of my Elemental Hero's by 500 for this turn alone. My pick is Avian (1000 500 1500/1000)!"

Glowing red with a flame like aura surrounding him, the green furred warrior let out a small cry, showing his increased strength.

"Time for another spell, so I play Tag Request! With the help of this spell, I can target a monster on my field. If I happen to have Elemental Hero in my hand with the same number of attack points, well, I can special summon them. I'll target Bubbleman, meaning I can now special summon Elemental Hero Clayman (800/2000)!"

Appearing onto the field was a large round grey warrior with a red domed head. His body was extremely thick, seemingly meaning he was built for defense.

"And now, I play this, the spell HERO Flash! With this, I have to remove H – Heated Heart, E – Emergency Call, R – Righteous Justice, and O – Over Soul all from my Graveyard!"

Slowly, one by one, the four cards slid out of Jaden's Graveyard Slot and into his awaiting hand. Once all four were present, he picked them up and placed them into his removed from play slot.

"Next, I'm allowed to special summon a Normal Type Elemental Hero from my deck, so I pick Elemental Hero Burstinatrix (1200/800)!"

Rising up onto the field in blaze of flames, a female warrior in red spandex with pale white skin and long black fanned out hair with white ends appeared. She let out a small cry, showing her readiness to engage in battle.

"Finally, all of my Normal Type Elemental Heroes are allowed to direct attack you for this one turn!"

"Say what!?" Illidan asked in shock.

Smiling, Jaden replied "They can direct attack you, so let's do this guys! Direct attack with Clay Clobber, Quill Cascade, and Flare Storm!"

Rushing forward, the large round warrior was first to hit Illidan with a large fist to his gut, making Illidan double over. A rain of white feathers to bombard him was next, making him move his arms from his stomach to cover his head. Once the bombardment was over, a sphere of flames struck him, engulfing his body in flames, making him cry out in pain and sink to one knee, panting heavily.

"I'll end by throwing down a face down (1500 – 500 1000/1000)." (Illidan 4500, Jaden 8000)

The entire crowd all was abuzz over the move Jaden had just performed, with many in complete shock.

Marie only stared in shock at her husband panting heavily. "I don't believe it…" she mumbled lowly.

"What a flawless play!" Bastion exclaimed.

"I can't believe it, Jaden managed to score a big hit in on Illidan that fast." Alexis commented.

Slightly smirking, Chazz added "Not bad Slacker."

"Way to play Jay!" Syrus cheered.

"That's the way Serge! Keep taking it to him!" Hasselberry added in.

"Hang in there Uncle." Mariah lowly whispered.

Chuckling evilly, Crowler whispered to Bonaparte "That Slifer Slacker Leader is finally getting what he deserves!"

"Too bad it's from another Slacker." Bonaparte muttered with a heavy sigh.

Back on the field, Jaden stared at a panting Illidan. "Professor Illidan, are you alright?"

After another moment or two, Illidan finally caught his breath and stood back up. With a deep breath, he smiled and replied "That was a nice move Jaden. I wasn't expecting you to come charging at me so quickly this early in the duel. Nicely done."

Smiling, Jaden sheepishly said "Thanks."

"Of course," Illidan began, "I'm not done yet. My move!"

Drawing his card and looking it over, Illidan said "I summon Breaker the Magical Warrior (1600/1000)!"

Upon Illidan slapping the card to his Duel Disk, a maroon robed warrior appeared onto the field. He wore a thick set of maroon robes and cape, a strange mage's hat that nearly covered his entire face, and had a sword in his right hand and a shield in his left.

"When I summon Breaker, his effect kicks off, allowing him to gain one Spell Counter, thus raising his attack points by 300 (1600 300 1900/1000)!"

A blue gem on the mage warrior's shield instantly began to glow with a light blue color.

"Next, I switch my two Magician's Valkyries into attack mode!"

Both female mages stood up, each swinging their staffs out to show they were ready for a fight.

"Hold on Illidan, I play a trap!" Jaden called out. Pointing at the face down card, he said "I activate Elemental Burst! By sacrificing Wind, Water, Air, and Fire Attribute monsters, I can destroy all cards on your field. Say goodbye to all of your monsters!"

Instantly, the green fur warrior transformed into a gusting wind, followed by the white caped warrior transforming into water. Beside of the two, the large grey warrior turned into dirt, and the female warrior transformed into flames. The four immediately streaked across the field in a tight formation. Each of the four struck the three mages, shattering each upon impact. Once the strikes were over, a large cloud of smoke filled the field, leaving an eerie silence. Slowly, the smoke cleared, revealing an empty field in front of both Illidan and Jaden.

"Sweet, I just took out all your monsters!" Jaden said with a smile.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan remarked "Nice move Jaden, but that was rather foolish."

Confused, Jaden asked "Why is that?"

"Because you just gave me what I needed to summon this monster! I remove from play my Magician's Valkyrie and Breaker the Magical Warrior in order to special summon Chaos Emperor Dragon – Envoy of the End (3000/2500)!" Illidan cried out.

Slowly materializing onto the field was a large black dragon with an orange mane, powerful arms and legs, sharp clawed hands and feet, a massive set of wings, and a strong tail. Once fully materialized, the dragon let out a loud roar, seemingly shaking the entire arena.

"_That's the way Illidan._" Marie encouraged within her mind.

"Great Scott!" Bastion said in shock.

Smiling great big, Mariah added "Way to go!"

"Sam Hill, that's one big dragon!" Hasselberry blurted out.

Nodding, Syrus anxiously said "I hope it's a nice dragon, because it sure doesn't look like it from here."

Both Alexis and Chazz chuckled at their two friends, but each pondered Jaden's fate.

"With that dragon out, Jaden is seriously in trouble." Alexis commented.

"That Slacker shouldn't have given Illidan the advantage." Chazz admonished.

On the field, Jaden stared down the dragon and gulped. A small streak of sweat slid down the side of his face while he stared on.

"Your mistake Jaden has just given me the ability to summon this monster." Illidan chided with a small smile.

Rubbing the back of his head nervously, Jaden said "My bad I suppose."

"Sure is, and now it's time my dragon showed how bad! Direct attack him with Chaos Blaster!" Illidan called out.

Roaring loudly, the large dragon began building energy within it's jaws. Opening them soon after, the dragon spat a black fireball at Jaden, striking him hard and making him fall to one knee where he began panting heavily.

"Before I call it a turn, I'll place a card face down. Your go Jaden." (Illidan 4500, Jaden 5000)

"Poor Serge." Hasselberry commented.

Sneering, Chazz darkly muttered "That Slacker should have known better than try and take Illidan down that way."

"Give it a rest Chazz." Alexis remarked irritably. "He tried to stop Illidan, but obviously Illidan had another trick up his sleeve."

"I'll say. That Chaos Emperor Dragon just turned the tide for Professor Illidan." Bastion calmly remarked.

Staring intensely, Syrus said "Still, he's not done, not by a long shot."

Slowly, on the field, Jaden started standing back up and at long last caught his breath. Lightly chuckling, he smiled at Illidan and excitedly said "Totally sweet move Illidan! That one sure smarted."

Placing a finger on his next card, Jaden drew, adding "But I'm not done yet! I play the spell Silent Doom. With this spell, I can return a monster from my Graveyard to the field in defense, and I'm picking my Hero Kid (300/600)!"

A kid in red and white futuristic armor with some black on it's legs and arms, with jet boots, a domed helmet, a red mask that covered most of their face, an orange bandanna, and messy purple hair appeared in a defensive stance.

"And when I special summon a Hero Kid, his effect goes off, allowing me to special summon every other Hero Kid in my deck!"

Searching through his deck, Jaden finally found the two cards and placed them on his Duel Disk horizontally. Two more strange looking children instantly appeared onto the field in defensive stances.

"That'll do it for me this round." (Illidan 4500, Jaden 5000)

Nodding, Illidan drew and smiled. "I summon this, my Rapid-Fire Magician (1600/1200)."

A mage with long flowing purple hair, a black pair of leather pants, a short sleeved cloak with black flowing cloak, an odd black hat, and two black finger cut off gloves then appeared. In each hand he held a staff with bird like claws, which clutched small orbs. To top it all off, around nine different colored spheres formed an arch around him.

"Rapid-Fire Magician and Chaos Emperor Dragon, attack a Hero Kid a piece with Rapid Fire Burst and Chaos Blaster!"

Pointing his staff at one of the small kid monsters, the mage in black released a flurry of black energy spheres. The spheres pummeled the kid for a few moments till finally the kid gave out and shattered. Next, the large black dragon roared loudly and spat a black fireball at the next kid creature, striking it hard and instantly shattering it.

"I'll end now." (Illidan 4500, Jaden 5000)

Picking up a new card, Jaden quickly glanced at it and slapped it to his Duel Disk horizontally, saying "I summon Card Trooper (400/400) in defense."

Appearing onto the field in sparkling light was a tank like robot with a pair of red blast arms, a red round cylinder chest, a blue tank bottom, and a glass head that housed many circuits. Upon fully appearing, the robot crossed it's arms.

"That'll do for me." (Illidan 4500, Jaden 5000)

Drawing, Illidan lightly smiled. "Watch this Jaden! I play the spell Magical Blast! Thanks to this spell, for every Spellcaster Type monster on my field, you take 200 points of direct damage!"

The spell card image instantly began glowing and fired a blue and red fireball of magical energy straight for Jaden. Bracing himself, Jaden took the blast head on. The blast exploded upon impact, sending out a billow of smoke.

"Don't think you're getting off that easy Jaden, because my Rapid-Fire Magician's special ability just kicked in also. When a normal spell is played, you take 400 points of damage!"

Pointing his staff at Jaden, the mage willed the many spheres surrounding him forward. The spheres all struck Jaden, making him cry out in pain and slip to one knee. There, he sat, lightly panting and attempting to gather his wits and strength.

"I wouldn't worry about getting up yet Jaden, because you're about to lose your defense! Rapid-Fire Magician and Chaos Emperor Dragon, eliminate his monsters!"

Aiming his staff at the kid creature, the mage instantly released a stream of magical spheres of energy straight for the kid. The kid met them head on and was easily destroyed. The dragon then took it's turn and released a dark fireball of energy, smashing the robot into many pieces.

Upon the robot exploding, Jaden softly smirked and stood up with his breath finally caught. "Thanks Illidan! By sending Card Trooper to the Graveyard, I get to draw one card from my deck."

Nodding while Jaden picked up his card, Illidan calmly remarked "No matter. I shall end my turn now." (Illidan 4500, Jaden 4400)

"Good, cause it's my move!" Jaden confidently called out while picking up a card. Looking at it, he grinned, saying "Here I come Illidan! I play the spell The Warrior Returning Alive! With this, I can take a Warrior Type monster from my Grave and add it to my hand. And the one I want is Elemental Hero Bubbleman!"

Slowly, Jaden's Graveyard Slot glowed to life and pushed the monster card out. Picking it up quickly, Jaden slapped it to his Duel Disk. "Now then, I summon Bubbleman (800/1200) in defense, so welcome back buddy!"

Reappearing onto the field in a spray of bubbles was the white caped warrior who instantly took up a defensive stance.

"Since he's all alone on my field, that means I draw two new cards!" Jaden stated while picking up two cards. Examining them closely, he added "Next up, the spell Dark Factory of Mass Production! This let's me take two Normal Type monsters from my Graveyard and add them back to my hand."

Holding his hand over his Graveyard slot, Jaden patiently waited till two cards came out of the slot and into his hand. Placing them in his left hand, Jaden grabbed another card, saying "Time for some fusion action, so I play the spell Double Fusion! By paying 500 life points, I can have two Fusion Summonings this turn. To start out, I'll fuse Elemental Heroes Avian (1000/1000) and Burstinatrix (1200/800) to create Elemental Hero Flame Wingman (2100/1200)!"

Materializing instantly onto the field was the green fur warrior with white wings, along with the female warrior in red spandex. The two instantly swirled together, creating a new creature that had mostly green skin with some black, a red dragon arm, a strange white wing on it's left shoulder, a powerful red tail that looked like a serpents, and a strange black and green face. The new warrior released a small battle cry and took up a fighting pose in front of Jaden.

"Want more, well here it is! I merge Flame Wingman with Elemental Hero Sparkman (1600/1400) to create Elemental Hero Shining Flare Wingman (2500/2100)!"

Emerging beside of the dragon armed warrior was a new warrior in blue and gold armor with wing like structures on his back and a strange helmet. The two instantly swirled together, forming a blinding light. From the light, a new white creature with green skin peaking out from his helmet appeared. On the warrior's back were massive sharp metal wings. His feet were three toes that looked like a bird's talon, and his hands were in black gloves. Beams of blinding green light radiated off of the warrior, making it hard to stare at him.

Smirking at his new monster, Jaden called out "Professor Illidan, Shining Flare Wingman is about to cut you down big time."

Lightly chuckling, Illidan responded with "We'll see Jaden. After all, my Chaos Emperor Dragon has 500 more attack points than your monster."

Nodding, Jaden remarked "True, at the moment, but check this out. He has a sweet special ability. For every Elemental Hero chilling out in my Graveyard, he gains 300 attack points. Now then, let's do a hero roll call! First, there is Clayman, then Avian, next is Burstinatrix, followed by Flare Wingman, and finally Sparkman, meaning I have a total of five monsters, giving my Shining Flare Wingman 1500 bonus attack points (2500 1500 4000/2100)!"

The white armored warrior's green glow instantly intensified a bit and the warrior took up a powering up pose with his fists raised and wings spread wide.

Illidan could only gasp in shock and lightly growled at this new revelation. "This is going to smart." he lowly murmured.

Pointing at the large black dragon, Jaden called out "Shining Flare Wingman, show Chaos Emperor Dragon what you're made of! Attack with Shining Flare Nova!"

Launching into the air above Jaden, the white armored warrior spread it's wings and turned slightly to the right while bringing it's palms together. Between it's palms formed a powerful green sphere of energy. In a fluid motion, the warrior flung the sphere at the large black dragon.

With small beads of perspiration sliding down his face, Illidan yelled "Not happening Jaden! I play my trap, Shift! With this trap, I can redirect your attack to any other monster on my field."

Looking at his black robed mage, Illidan sadly said "I'm sorry Rapid-Fire Magician."

The mage glanced back and slightly nodded, seemingly saying it was alright. Nodding back, Illidan continued on and called out "Rapid-Fire Magician, move to intercept that blast!"

Quickly leaping in front of the black dragon, the black robed mage spread his arms wide, seemingly protecting the dragon. The green sphere of energy soon enough slammed roughly into the mage, making him scream out in pain. The energy easily tore through his body, making it explode into millions of pieces. The remainder of the blast instantly struck Illidan, making him collapse to one knee.

"Pretty quick thinking Professor Illidan." Jaden complimented. "Still, it's not enough to save you from this. Shining Flare Wingman has another special ability. When he destroys a monster in battle, that monster's attack points come directly out of your life points! Go and light up his world!"

Seeing the large white armored warrior coming, Illidan struggled to his feet. Upon landing in front of him, the white warrior instantly began sending out a blinding green light from it's body, making Illidan cry out in pain before he was thrown back to the ground.

"I'll end my turn at that." (Illidan 500, Jaden 3900)

The entire crowd stared at the fallen Illidan, who had landed hard on his back and had yet to move since the fall.

"Illidan…" Marie murmured lowly.

"What skillful play on both their parts!" Bastion exclaimed.

Frowning, Mariah asked "How so?"

"Well, Jaden took a majority of Illidan's life points away, plus one monster. But to boot, Illidan managed to save his dragon. He knew he'd lose the same amount of life points, so he switched the target to a different monster." Bastion explained.

"Heh, that Slacker is going to win. Still, the Chazz should have been his opponent, not Professor Illidan." Chazz grumbled.

Sighing, Alexis irritably remarked "Shut up already about it Chazz! Jaden has his hands full as is, and I think this duel is great so far."

"I agree, plus Jay is winning!" Syrus happily added.

"Roger that Private Truesdale! The Serge is kicking butt and taking names!" Hasselberry remarked.

Staring down at the field, Marie felt a bit of worry. "_I've seen him in tough duels before, but this one, it seems to be the greatest duel he's been in yet. Illidan, please, hang on. I know you can win, but don't give up yet. I know you can do this, so please, just hang in there._"


	89. Chapter 89: Past vs Future, Pt 2

**Why hello again everyone! Well, this week has seemingly flown by. So, not much has really happened since last time, other than my mate finally found out that the one job she's been waiting on forever has finally been decided. She got it! I'm so happy for her, although that means we'll be moving, lol. I don't mind too much I suppose, although it does make a bit of a mess of things, but oh well. That happens, I suppose, lol. Anyways, she is very excited, which I am too. ****She is going to check on another job first though before anything else, since she said she'd need a month to get setup and all. We'll just have to see what happens. Other than that, not much has happened I suppose.**

**Writing wise, it's kind of slowed down. Heh, I've barely worked on **_**Another**_** since early this week. Oh well, that happens, plus I've been waiting to finish up a chapter on **_**Another**_** before going back and working on **_**MtM**_**. (/Sighs\) I'll get to it today, I hope. Speaking of **_**Another**_**, for any who are interested, I'm going to begin posting it today, so if you're interested in an Inuyasha fic, feel free to check it out.**

**Last time, the duel between Jaden and Illidan began with Jaden taking an early lead with a powerful card combo. Illidan quickly retaliated for it, only to take damage once more and be taken down to his last 500 points. With only 500 life points left, can Illidan rally back and win this duel, or has Jaden done beat him?**

**WOW! This story has 501 reviews! Excellent job everyone! Thank you so much for these reviews and support on this story! I guess I've decided also what to do with the remainder of the story. Next week, I'll post 2 chapters, one on Monday and one on Friday. I'll do the same the following week, thus finishing out the story. I know, I just gave away how much longer the story is, but oh well, lol.**

**At any rate, let's do the reviews!**

**DuelistBlake1852: That's alright about not reviewing. I understand, life happens and you can't read/review all the time. I had no problem with it at all. Heh, I'm still far behind on reading some fan fics myself. Like one ended and I've yet to read what happened, lol. Yes, the duel is by far thus far intense. True, Jaden's skills have grown tremendously since he dueled Yugi. Also true that Illidan is far from done. He maybe weakened, but he won't quit. Yeah, it is kind of sad that this story is coming to an end. The series isn't over due that I have one more sequel left. I originally was going to end the series with this story, but I realized there was so many things left that a sequel was needed. I know some people who finish up a series never to write again, but that's not me. I may not do Yugioh fics again after this last sequel, but it's not been decided yet. I'll know for sure once I finish **_**Minutes to Midnight**_** I suppose. I don't intend on quitting writing. Heh, too many ideas in my head to just up and quit, so no worries here. Good luck on writing on your story! And don't worry about not reviewing. It happens, lol. Thanks for the review!**

**x-knight20: OMG! You're the 500****th**** reviewer! Ardee will be so jealous that you got the last benchmark, lol. Thanks about the chapter. Heh, yeah, the car thing is always a bother, lol. Thanks for the review!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: LOL! Yeah, this duel is very hard to figure out who will win. I mean, both are so strong. A draw, eh? It could happen. True, Illidan lost a large amount of life points quickly. Jaden did sleep, but just a little I suppose. Heh, he was working hard on his deck while Illidan was probably detained as well, hehe. Btw, here is the url. I hope it goes through this time. Thanks for the review!**

**Raymond: Thanks. Yeah, Illidan had better do something and soon, but again, this is Illidan. He'll find a way to make it. Thanks for the review!**

**Nathan: Yep, the epic duel has begun at last. True, both are in rather top form thus far, with Jaden seemingly doing better. I'm unsure how many Jaden has, but I can promise you Illidan has more than 40. Actually, I think Jaden has never gone over 40 cards ever, so it's believable. Thanks for the thoughts though, and for the review!**

**sirbj: Yep, Jaden took the lead early. He sure has progressed since the early part of the story. I wonder if his loss to Illidan and Marie with Chazz in the beginning of the story possibly made him work to get better… Something to think on I suppose, lol. But yes, don't count out Illidan yet. He's a survivor, and he's faced some of the strongest duelists in the world. Heh, yeah, Seto didn't hire him without knowing he could do the job, and rather well at that. Thanks for the review!**

**Well, that's it for this time around. Thank you everyone for your reviews, and I really do thank all of you for helping this story reach 500 reviews. It was one of my goals to reach when this story started out, and I'm so very happy that this story reached this kind of height. Heh, I suppose I'm really surprised though that it did it in less time than **_**ToP**_**. What I mean is, **_**ToP**_** has 33,861 hits, while **_**FG**_** only has 14,099. That's a big difference, especially since **_**ToP**_** has 580 reviews and **_**FG**_** has 501. Finally, I'm really happy that this story surpassed **_**ToP**_** in number of words. It had already surpassed it and I didn't know till this morning. **_**ToP**_** had 349,289 total words, while **_**FG**_** has a total of 361,650 so far, plus the story isn't over yet! Those are some great things!**

**Lol, I know, I probably bored everyone with all those number, hehe. At any rate, I'm very happy with this story so far. It's surpassed all my expectations. I wasn't sure how it would do in the GX section, but I can see it worked out well. Thank you everyone for your reviews and help in making this story so great.**

**Ok, well, I'm done for today, so enjoy the chapter!**

**Chapter 89**

Laying on his back, Illidan lightly moaned from the pain inflicted upon him. "_He's far better than I thought._"

Squeezing his eyes shut, he pushed the pain to the back of his mind and slowly sat up. Reopening his eyes, Illidan gradually stood up, but staggered a bit upon standing fully and ended up hunched over.

"You ok?" Jaden asked with a bit of concern.

Softly chuckling, Illidan slowly straightened his body and revealed his face. With a smile, he replied "Yes, I'm fine. Your move was very impressive Jaden."

"Thanks!" Jaden happily responded.

Smiling once more, Illidan then turned serious and said "But don't think you've won yet. I'm far from done."

Drawing his card, he showed it to Jaden, declaring "First, I play Pot of Greed. Now I draw two cards, so let's see what I have in stored for you!"

Picking up another two cards, he smiled. "Ok, here goes! I remove from my Graveyard my Magician's Valkyrie and Rapid-Fire Magician in order to special summon another of my Chaos monsters!"

One by one, the two monster cards slid out of the Graveyard Slot and into Illidan's awaiting hand. Taking both up and placing them in his removed from play slot, he immediately held one card out and smirked.

"Another one!?" Jaden quietly asked. In his mind, he frantically thought about which of Illidan's monsters it could be. "_Chaos Emperor Dragon is ruled out, so that only leaves two. The soldier or the sorcerer, but either one is trouble for me right now._"

Seeing Jaden's worried look, Illidan lightly smirked. "Chaos Sorcerer (2300/2000), I summon you!"

Slowly materializing onto the field was a creature with purple skin, two large ivory white horns on the side of his head, and yellow eyes. On his chest were a few straps that crisscrossed his body. His shoulders were covered by a set of shoulder pads made up of leather. He had armbands that went from his elbow to his wrists that were black as well, and finally wore a pair of black leather pants and a battle skirt as well. Once fully on the field, the monster let out a small battle cry and took his place beside of the large black dragon.

"Chaos Sorcerer, let's show Jaden what we can really do! I activate your special ability. So long as Chaos Sorcerer doesn't attack this turn, I can remove a monster from the game that is on the field, and guess what Jaden, I choose your Shining Flare Wingman!" Illidan cried out while pointing a finger at the white armored warrior.

Raising his right hand above his head, and lowering his left to his stomach, the purple skinned mage sent power coursing into his palms. A black glow appeared in his right hand, while a white glow appeared in his left. Widening his golden eyes, he shot a beam of energy from each hand at the white armored warrior. The twin blasts scored a direct hit, making the warrior cry out in pain. In a flash, he was shattered and vanished completely from the field, leaving only the white caped warrior.

"Chaos Emperor Dragon, take down Bubbleman now with Chaos Blaster!"

Roaring loudly, the large black dragon spat a black fireball at the white caped warrior. The fireball easily incinerated the warrior, shattering him into millions of pieces.

"I'll place this face down and let you have a turn." (Illidan 500, Jaden 3900)

"Impressive." Bastion calmly said. "Even after a major shot like last turn, Illidan still keeps fighting on."

"That's my uncle for you. He won't give up, ever, no matter how bad things look." Mariah added.

Crossing his arms, Chazz grunted out "That Slacker better not lose."

"Oh come on Chazz, get over yourself. Jaden is fighting as hard as he can to win this duel." Alexis admonished.

"Whatever." Chazz responded.

Lightly giggling at the pair, Marie turned her concerned eyes back to Illidan. "_Good, he's still in this duel. Don't give up now Illidan. I know you can do this. Just keep on believing you can._"

On the field, Jaden lightly chuckled and said "Nice move there Professor Illidan. You managed to get rid of Shining Flare Wingman, and left me defenseless. But I'm not done yet!"

"I know, so make your move Jaden." Illidan calmly remarked.

Nodding, Jaden drew his card and smiled. "I'm going to activate a sweet spell. It's called Hope of Fifth, and boy is it helpful. First, I take five Elemental Heroes from my Graveyard and add them back to my deck. The five I choose are Avian, Burstinatrix, Bubbleman, Clayman, and Sparkman."

Each of the five cards slowly slid out of Jaden's Graveyard Slot and stacked up on top of one another. Once all five were out, Jaden grabbed them up and shuffled them back into his deck.

"Next comes the sweet part. I get to draw two new cards, plus since I had no cards in my hand or on my field when I played this card, I can draw three cards instead of two."

Picking up three new cards, Jaden examined them before showing one. "I summon my Neo-Spacian Dark Panther (1000/500)!"

Materializing instantly onto the field was a black panther creature with a black cape on his back. The panther let out a low growl, showing it was ready to pounce.

"I'll throw down two face downs and activate Dark Panther's special ability. You see, he's a bit of a copy cat. He likes to take my opponent's monster's special effect and copy them for himself. Dark Panther, why don't you go and copy that Chaos Emperor Dragon!"

The black panther instantly began gazing upon the large black dragon. His eyes immediately turned bright red and his body melted away into a black puddle. The puddle soon enough came to life and an exact copy of the black dragon appeared onto the field.

"Alright, let's do this! Dark Panther, I pay a 1000 life points in order to activate your new effect. Time for Infinite Blaster!"

Roaring loudly, the copy of the large black dragon moved to the center of the field and began glowing brightly.

"School's out for you Illidan!" Jaden said with a big smirk.

Pointing at his face down card, Illidan replied hurriedly "Not yet it's not! I activate the trap Chaotic Energy! Thanks to this trap, for every monster on my field with the word 'Chaos' or 'Envoy' in it's name, I gain a 1000 life points. Since I have two, that means I gain two grand!"

Both the purple skinned mage and the large black dragon lightly glowed with a golden light. Once the glowing died from around them, Illidan began to softly glow with a golden light while his life point counter increased.

Softly growling, Jaden was quick to respond with "No matter, you're still losing your monsters! Do it Dark Panther!"

The copied black dragon roared loudly once more and began to glow with a blinding white light. Slowly, bit by bit, the dragon's body began to glow so bright that it became unbearable to look at. At long last, the dragon gathered all the energy it needed and exploded, shattering the real black dragon, the purple skinned mage, the two face down cards, and the fake dragon itself. The explosion sent up a plume of smoke, covering the field in it, making it hard for anyone to see what had happened. Slowly, the smoke lifted, revealing Illidan still standing, as well as Jaden, but each were facing empty fields.

"Thanks to Dark Panther, you now take 300 points of damage for each card that was on our fields. Since I had three, and you had two, that means a total of 1500 life points."

A dark black glow instantly surrounded Illidan, making him cry out in pain and fall to one knee panting heavily. Slowly, he rose up, but with a great bit of difficulty.

"Plus, I gotta show you my face downs. First, there was the trap Dummy Marker. When it goes to the Graveyard, I get to draw one new card. Also, there was another trap, Hero Medal. When it's destroyed, it instead goes back to my deck and I draw new card."

Placing the one trap within his deck, Jaden shuffled and drew two cards. Frowning, he sighed and with a hint of sadness in his voice said "I'll call it a turn I suppose." (Illidan 1000, Jaden 2900)

"That was a close one." Marie said while letting out a sigh of relief.

"Jay was so close." Syrus grumbled.

Nodding, Hasselberry added "The Serge is still in the hunt, but that was an unlucky break for him."

"My, my, what skillful play! Professor Illidan plans out his moves so brilliantly!" Bastion complimented.

Smiling, Mariah proudly said "That's my uncle for you. He knows how to hang on and take a person down."

"Still, this duel isn't over yet." Chazz darkly muttered. "That Slacker better keep his head in the game, or he'll lose."

Back on the field, Illidan picked up his new card and softly smiled. "Alright Jaden, check this out! I summon Silent Magician LV 4 (1000/1000) in attack mode."

Upon Illidan slapping the card to his Duel Disk, a young, childlike mage dressed in white robes with an odd mage's hat and a scepter appeared.

"Silent Magician, take a shot at his life points with Silent Scepter Blast!"

Nodding happily, the young mage pointed his staff at Jaden. With little effort, the mage fired off a white sphere of magical energy. The blast slammed into Jaden, making him grunt out in pain, but he managed to stay standing.

"I end." (Illidan 1000, Jaden 1900)

Drawing, Jaden called out "It's time I get my game on!"

"Sounds like a plan Jaden, but first my mage gets his on. You see, when you drew a card, you activated his special ability! He now gains a Spell Counter, which grants him 500 additional attack points (1000 500 1500/1000)." Illidan calmly explained.

The young mage instantly glowed with a white aura, and seemingly took on a small growth spurt, for his height rose somewhat.

Growling with a touch of frustration, Jaden sighed and grumbled "So much for my plan. I summon Elemental Hero Wildheart (1500/1600) in defense mode."

Appearing onto the field with a wild battle cry, a tan skin warrior with jet black hair pulled into a pony tail, a black goatee, and a strange set of red tattoos on his chest and shoulders emerged. The warrior wore a simple loin cloth and had a large sheath with a massive sword on his back. Sitting down into a one knee position, the warrior crossed his arms.

"I'll leave it at that." (Illidan 1000, Jaden 1900)

"Not much of a choice but to." Illidan calmly said as he drew. Examining the card for a moment, he finally said "I'll place a card face down and call it a turn." (Illidan 1000, Jaden 1900)

Drawing once more, Jaden slightly smiled, but then frowned. While waiting on Jaden, Illidan calmly said "Don't forget Jaden, by drawing, my mage gets stronger (1500 500 2000/1000)."

Sighing lightly, Jaden nodded, saying "Yeah, I know… I'll summon Elemental Hero Avian (1000/1000) in defense."

Appearing onto the field in a defensive stance was the green fur warrior once more with his large white wings.

"I'll throw down a face down and that'll do it." (Illidan 1000, Jaden 1900)

Nodding, Illidan calmly drew and said "Right. First off, to start this turn out, I activate my trap. It's called Pitch-Black Power Stone."

Materializing onto the field in front of Illidan, but off to the side, was a small pedestal with a black seeing stone that had a golden triangle within it.

"This trap starts out with three Spell Counters. Once each turn, I can remove a counter and add it to any card on the field that can hold one, such as Silent Magician. I'll now remove one Spell Counter and add it to Silent Magician, thus strengthening him further (2000 500 2500/1000)."

"Next up, I summon my Mythical Beast Cerberus (1400/1400)!"

Instantly materializing onto the field was a large blue and purple large dog like creature with sharp fangs, claws, and fur that was floating off of his paws and neck. The fur seemed almost like purple energy that floated about.

"Alright, time to clean the field up! Go, Silent Magician, attack Jaden's Wildheart with Silent Scepter Blast!"

Aiming his staff perfectly at the tanned warrior, the white mage launched a white sphere of energy straight at the warrior.

Pointing at his face down, Jaden called out "Not happening! I play a trap, Negate Attack! Just like the trap sounds like, it negates your attack and ends your Battle Phase!"

A small black hole instantly emerged in front of the white sphere of energy, easily sucking up the blast before it could even harm the tanned warrior.

"Oh well." Illidan said with a sigh. "I end my turn." (Illidan 1000, Jaden 1900)

Picking up a new card, Jaden slightly smiled. He was about to say something when Illidan interrupted. "Don't forget, my mage just got stronger thanks to your move Jaden (2500 500 3000/1000)."

Lightly growling, Jaden remarked "Yeah, I haven't forgot. I'll activate the spell Mirage of Nightmare. This let's me draw during your Standby Phase till I hold four cards, but during my Standby Phase, I have to discard the same number of cards I drew."

Softly smiling, Illidan mentally guessed Jaden's plan. "_He'll throw down Emergency Provisions and gain a 1000 points by giving up Mirage of Nightmare. Heh, a similar move to what I make usually._"

Turning his attention back to the duel, Illidan calmly said "Jaden, by playing that spell, you've activated Cerberus's effect. Each time a spell card is played, he gains a Spell Counter, which raises his attack points by 500 (1400 500 1900/1400)."

The blue and purple dog creature lowly growled as the purple fur that looked like flames increased in size.

Rubbing the back of his head and grinning innocently, Jaden responded "Oops, my bad. Well, to finish up, I'll throw down a face down." (Illidan 1000, Jaden 1900)

"Good, then it's move draw!" Illidan calmly said as he picked up a card.

Jaden nodded, and replied "Yeah, and it's mine thanks to Mirage of Nightmare. Now I can pick up four new cards."

Picking up four, he then pointed at his face down, saying "Time to play my spell, Emergency Provisions. This lets me sacrifice a spell or trap on my field and gain a grand in life points. Alright, I'll give up Mirage of Nightmare and gain a 1000 life points."

The spell card image instantly turned into sparkly particles and Jaden's life points increased, making Illidan slightly smile.

"I figured as much. Don't forget Jaden, by playing a spell, you just activated Cerberus's special ability. He now gains a Spell Counter, giving him another 500 attack points (1900 500 2400/1400). And let's not forget Silent Magician, for drawing those cards granted him Spell Counters also, like one for each card."

Instantly becoming nervous, Jaden exclaimed "Oh no, not four new counters!"

Chuckling at Jaden's fright, Illidan replied "Relax Jaden. My mage can only have five Spell Counters on him at one time, so he only gained one more (3000 500 3500/1000)."

Letting out a big sigh of relief, Jaden calmed down a bit. "Phew, that was close. I thought for a moment your mage just gained 2000 attack points."

Lightly chuckling once more at Jaden, Illidan nodded and replied "That would most definitely be bad for you, but true, you're lucky, but not completely lucky. You see, when Silent Magician has five Spell Counters on him, I can remove all five and sacrifice him to special summon his next form! Silent Magician LV4, I release you from your duties in order to bring out Silent Magician LV8 (3500/1000)!"

Glancing back at Illidan, the white mage smiled and simply nodded before vanishing into a white light. A moment later, a new mage, similar in looks, except older and more mature with more height and strength appeared. The mage's silver hair was a bit longer than when he was younger, and his brown eyes still showed great innocence, but great power as well.

"Cerberus, attack Avian with Mythical Pounce!"

Letting out a loud snarl, the blue and purple dog leapt into the air and came down hard onto the green furred warrior. The dog pressed the warrior flat to the ground, shattering him upon impact.

"Unfortunately, whenever Cerberus attacks, he loses his Spell Counters, thus weakening him (2400 – 1000 1400/1400)." Illidan stated with a small frown. Perking up instantly, Illidan added "But easy come, easy go. Silent Magician, show your new strength by taking down Wildheart! Silent Scepter Blast!"

Pointing his staff instantly at the tan skin warrior, the mage released a blast of white magical energy. The blast easily shattered the warrior, who let out a small cry of pain before vanishing.

"To end, I'll place a card face down and activate Pitch-Black Power Stone. With this, I can transfer a Spell Counter to another card on my field, and I pick Cerberus (1400 500 1900/1400). That'll be all." (Illidan 1000, Jaden 2900)

Taking a deep breath, Jaden drew his new card and smiled. "Sweet, this should work. I'll kick this turn off by summoning an old favorite, my Elemental Hero Bubbleman (800/1200)!"

Instantly materializing onto the field once more was the blue armored warrior with a white cape and a bubble gun strapped to his wrist.

"You know the drill. Since Bubbleman is all alone, I get two new cards!"

Quickly grabbing two cards, Jaden placed one within his left hand and showed the other, saying "First up, I play the spell Monster Reincarnation! All I have to do is toss a card into my Graveyard and bam, I get a monster back. I'll toss Polymerization and grab Neo-Spacian Dark Panther."

Placing the card simply into his Graveyard Slot, Jaden patiently waited for the card already in his Graveyard to come out. After a moment, the slot glowed and the monster card slid out into Jaden's awaiting hand.

"Don't forget Jaden, you just helped Cerberus get stronger (1900 500 2400/1400)." Illidan calmly warned while his dog creature lightly glowed with a purple aura.

Nodding, Jaden remarked "It's all good! Next up is this, Fusion Recovery! This spell let's me take one Fusion material monster and a Polymerization card from my Graveyard and put them back in my hand. The monster I pick is my fine feathered friend, Elemental Hero Avian."

Once more, Jaden's Graveyard slot glowed to life and pushed out the single monster card and spell card into his waiting hand.

"I hope you know what you're doing Jaden, because you just strengthened Cerberus once more (2400 500 2900/1400)." Illidan warned.

Lightly chuckling, Jaden was quick to say back "It's all good! Now then, I play the spell Polymerization, fusing Bubbleman along with the Elemental Heroes Sparkman (1600/1400) and Avian (1000/1000) in my hand to create the mighty Elemental Hero Tempest (2800/2800)!"

Without warning, the blue and gold warrior and the green fur warrior from earlier in the duel both reappeared beside of the white caped warrior. Together, the three swirled together and vanished. Appearing in their place was a mighty warrior in mostly blue spandex and some gold armor that obviously came from the blue and gold warrior. On his right arm, instead of a hand, there was a single gun point. On his left hand was a claw like piece of armor. His back had a pair of metal white wings with green at the top. He had a pair of silver shoulder pads, and his muscular arms were bare. His face has a small blue visor covering his eyes with golden tips at the ends over his ears. He had long green hair lightly swayed with the wind surrounding his summoning.

"Not bad, but rather pointless." Illidan calmly said. "You completely forgot about Cerberus's special ability, meaning he gets stronger once more (2900 500 3400/1400)."

Chuckling, Jaden replied "True, but who said I was done yet. I activate the special ability of a new Elemental Hero in my hand. I discard Elemental Hero Captain Gold in order to activate his special effect. I can now transfer one Skyscraper card from my deck to my hand."

Once placing the monster card into his Graveyard, Jaden pulled his deck out and began searching through it. After a few moments, he finally found the card and placed it within his hand and shuffled his deck. He then placed it back and smirked.

"Alright, it's time for a change of scene. I play the field spell Skyscraper!"

Upon placing the card into the slot on the end of his Duel Disk, the field instantly began to tremble as large skyscraper buildings shot out of the ground and a night sky with a large moon appeared. The platform instantly became blacktop, and the familiar glow of city lights filled the field.

"In here, when an Elemental Hero battles a stronger monster, then that hero gains a 1000 attack points. Since both of your monsters are stronger than Tempest, he gets a wing up on both (2800 1000 3800/2800)!"

The green haired warrior's body instantly began to lightly glow with white energy, causing his hair to sway slightly.

"Don't forget Jaden, each time you play a spell, Cerberus only gets stronger (3400 500 3900/1400)." Illidan chastised.

Nodding, Jaden replied "Yeah, yeah, I know, but don't you forget that Tempest is now strong enough to fight."

"I wonder if he'll attack..." Alexis mumbled.

Frowning a bit, Bastion responded with "I'm not sure, but I would assume he'll go after Cerberus. It keeps growing stronger, meaning Jaden will have real trouble soon."

"But his monster won't survive." Mariah protested.

"True, but Tempest can survive the battle if Jaden gets rid of a card on his field." Bastion responded.

Lightly nodding, Mariah replied "Still, you have to remember Silent Magician will always have 3500 attack points. Jaden should take it out since Illidan went to a lot of trouble in summoning it."

Looking on with a worried face, Syrus quietly mumbled "Jaden."

Seeing Syrus's look of worry, Hinata gave his hand a small reassuring squeeze, all the while blushing furiously at it. "He'll make it Syrus." she mumbled to him.

"The Serge will make the right decision, I know it." Hasselberry trumped in.

"Yeah right." Chazz darkly muttered.

Staring down at Illidan, Marie quietly awaited Jaden's move. Glancing at Illidan's field, she softly smiled. "_I thought so. He's ready._"


	90. Chapter 90: Past vs Future, Pt 3

**Hey there everyone. Well, this weekend was pretty cool, and it all started on Friday night. My mate came home when I was talking to my dad and waved a paper in front of me. I was like, what? She then told me that she got a second job she had applied for, meaning things had changed yet again with her job situation, lol. Once I got off the phone, we talked it over, trying to figure out the pros and cons of each job. In the end, she wasn't sure still, so I told her to think about it. Saturday, I went and visited my grandmother, where my mom and uncle form Tennessee was for the weekend. They had come in for a visit and were leaving today (Monday). I spent the day with them and grandpa, who was doing pretty well. He was sleepy, but had a decent day. I finally left and decided to go back Sunday. Anyways, came home, and after a while my mate came home. She told me she decided on the second job she got, which is a job with the state department. They have great benefits, and decent pay (not the best, but decent). With this choice, we don't have to move since it's closer to home, plus we can stick around till our lease runs out in April, meaning we'll get our deposit back too. Once April approaches, we can decide if we wish to move or not. Other than that, yesterday was pretty cool at my grandmother's again. I was surprised to hear the Patriots lost, but oh well. It happens, lol.**

**Writing wise, eh, I've been slow this weekend and part of last week. I should be able to get into the swing of things this week though. Once I finish up a chapter in **_**Another**_**, I have plans to work hard on **_**MtM**_**. Btw, I began posting **_**Another**_** this past Friday, and plan on putting a chapter out every Tuesday or Thursday. Just depends on when I've got time. Actually, on second thought, make that Wednesday now that **_**FG**_** is winding down.**

**Last time, Illidan made a comeback and pushed Jaden back a great bit, but Jaden is mounting his own comeback by summoning up Elemental Hero Tempest. Can Jaden win this duel, or is he being set up for a big loss?**

**Alright, time for reviews!**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Yep, you were number 500, lol. The end is coming, slowly, lol. Who will win, well, only three people know that answer right now, hehe. Thanks for the review.**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Yeah, he could beat Silent Magician, but I think he knows how Cerberus works, so he may try to weaken it first. Well, that sucks that the link isn't working… I guess I could email it to you. Send me a PM with your email and I'll send it to you that way if you want. Yeah, the story has to end sometime or another, lol, cute pun. Thanks for the review!**

**Knives91: LOL! Yeah, so Marie thinks, hehe. Heh, Jaden isn't making things easy, that much is for sure. Thanks for the review!**

**sirbj: Yep, Jaden still leads, but with Illidan closing, not for long. Yeah, I'm sure he's trying to figure out how to get rid of two powerhouses. True, it would be funny if it ends in a tie I suppose, lol. Thanks for the review!**

**JudaiAsuka-fan: Thanks. Heh, the moves are easy to think up, once I figured out what I wanted to do, lol. True, both Mariah and Bastion have points, but who is right, no idea. It's possible Illidan could win due that Marie said that… But you never know, hehe. True, I haven't finished up with the next story. Lol, me and ardee are working on it though. We'll get there, eventually, lol. Thanks for the review!**

**DuelistBlake1852: Yeah, he should probably get rid of Silent Magician first, but Cerberus is dangerous and can be weakened. True, Silent Magician is possibly a bigger threat due that he's immune to Jaden's spells. Yes, I did kind of realize Silent Magician LV4's effect after I saw your comment. I remembered it acts like Solemn Wishes, in which you only gain 500 per each draw, not for each card drawn. Heh, I was looking at the show's effect I bet when I said that (Yami got schooled by Yugi with that effect, lol). True, Shining Flare Wingman and Tempest are tough, but Illidan has beaten Shining Flare Wingman, and all that remains is Tempest. I think he can handle it… Yeah, I don't plan on quitting writing anytime soon. Too much to still write about, lol. True, I wouldn't be anywhere without this site. I posted on a set of Yugioh forums previously, but that got old. Glad you get to update your story too. LOL! That is crazy about the chapter's length without a duel, but then again, I'm finding that out in **_**Another**_**, lol. Thanks about my mate. She's happy, lol. Thanks for the review!**

**Well, that's all of them for this time around. Thank you all for your reviews. I'm glad to see all of your comments and questions. Btw, just so everyone knows, I'm going to post this chapter today and then one on Friday since this thing is nearly over, then do the same next week. Next Friday will be the end, unfortunately. At any rate,**_**Another**_** will be posted on Wednesday for now, so anyone interested, go ahead and check it out.**

**Thanks everyone for everything, and I hope you all like this chapter. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 90**

"Tempest, take down Illidan's Cerberus with Glider Strike!" Jaden called out with his hand pointed at the blue and purple dog creature.

Leaping into the air, the green haired warrior brought his right arm forward and aimed his blaster arm at the dog creature. White energy instantly began to fill the end of the blaster while the warrior made sure his aim was true. With perfect aim, the warrior launched the blast from his blaster hand straight for the blue and purple creature.

"Not happening this turn Jaden! I play my trap, Spellbinding Circle!" Illidan called out while pointing at his trap card.

A large a green circle with strange golden symbols with formed on the top, left, right, and bottom formed, with a white question mark like symbol in the center appeared above Illidan's side of the field. The circle without warning quickly flew across the field and flipped up so it could absorb the blast. Upon making contact, the blast fizzled out and the circle continued on till it wrapped around the green haired warrior, making him cry out in pain as it squeezed him.

"Tempest, no!" Jaden cried out.

Slightly smirking, Illidan remarked "Too bad you didn't check my field Jaden. Now thanks to Spellbinding Circle, Tempest can't attack or switch his mode. He's just a big bull's-eye now."

Lightly growling with frustration, Jaden said "I'll throw down a face down and end my turn." (Illidan 1000, Jaden 2900)

Picking up a new card, Illidan slightly smiled. "Tempest might be stronger than one of my monsters right now, but he won't be for long. I activate the equip spell Mage Power! This let's me raise my Silent Magician's points by 500 per a spell or trap in my spell/trap zone. Since I have two, that means he gains a grand (3500 500 2 4500/1000 500 2 2000)."

The white mage's body instantaneously began to glow with a bright white aura. While it did this, he let out a low growl before smirking with his new power.

"Since I also played a spell card, Cerberus gets stronger also (3900 500 4400/1400)."

The blue and purple dog creature lightly glowed with a dark purple aura as the flames on it's body seemed to rise once more.

"Cerberus, attack Tempest with Mythical Pounce!"

Roaring, the dog creature leapt into the air and slammed into the green haired warrior, who screamed out as he tried desperately to hold the creature back.

"Tempest isn't going anywhere, because I play his effect! By banishing a card from my field, he can stick around. I'll give up my face down Transcendent Wings, allowing Tempest to survive this shot." Jaden quickly called out.

The face down card instantly rose up and slowly dissolved away. The green haired warrior instantly glowed lightly upon this and knocked the dog creature up into the air and off of himself.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan remarked "True, you can save Tempest, but not your life points. You still take Battle Damage."

Hearing a growl, Jaden looked up to find the dog creature diving towards him. It slammed it's weight into him, knocking him back a bit. The dog then retreated to Illidan's field and let out a soft growl.

"Of course, Cerberus lost all his extra points when he attacked (1400/1400), but that's alright for now. Silent Magician, you're up! Take it to Tempest with Silent Scepter Blast!"

Glancing over his shoulder, the mage nodded and leapt into the air. Pointing his staff straight at the green haired warrior, the mage released a sphere of pure white magical energy that crackled while traveling down it's path straight for the warrior.

Grinding his teeth a bit, Jaden called out at the last moment "I activate Tempest's special ability again! I'll get rid of Skyscraper to keep him alive (3800 – 1000 2800/2800)."

Upon saying those words, the large buildings surrounding the field and the blacktop on it vanished. The green haired warrior glowed once more with a white glow. The blast impacted him, but the warrior managed to knock the blast away with the help of the white glow. With him knocking it away, the warrior accidentally threw it in Jaden's direction, who screamed out in pain as he fell to one knee upon impact.

"That will do it for me." (Illidan 1000, Jaden 600)

"Jaden…" Alexis mumbled with great concern on her face.

"Why bother worrying about that loser Alexis?" Chazz grumbled.

Throwing a death glare at Chazz, Alexis angrily remarked "Shut up Chazz!"

Crossing his arms, Chazz mumbled something lightly under his breath, making Alexis even angrier.

"Chill out you guys. The Serge needs our support right now!" Hasselberry piped up.

Sighing, Alexis nodded. "You're right." she concurred.

Looking down at the field, she silently said "_Jaden, you can do this, I know you can. Just hang in there a little longer._"

On the field, Jaden slowly rose back up and slowed his breathing. "Pretty sweet move Professor Illidan." he cheerfully commented.

Drawing a card, he added "But this duel isn't over! I'll throw down a face down and that's it." (Illidan 1000, Jaden 600)

Picking up his new card, Illidan placed it calmly within his left hand, saying "End this now Silent Magician! Attack Tempest with Silent Scepter Blast!"

Leaping up into the air, the mage took aim once more at the green haired warrior. Powerful white glowing magical energy formed a sphere at the end of his staff that crackled loudly. The blast was soon let go and sent sailing straight for the warrior, seemingly signing his death.

Pointing at his face down card, Jaden hurriedly said "Not happening because I play a spell card! Go De-Fusion, separate Tempest!"

Just as the blast was about to hit, the green hair warrior summoned up all of his strength. In a display of inhuman power, he broke the golden circle that had held him and glowed brightly. Moments later, the blast hit, but three beams of light shot out from it. Upon landing on the field, three warriors appeared. The first was the blue and gold armored warrior with a strange helmet that covered all of his head. The next one was the white caped warrior with a water blaster attached to his right hand. Finally, the green furred warrior appeared. All three took up crouching positions, each with their arms crossed.

"Thanks to De-Fusion, I may have lost Tempest, but I got back Elemental Heroes Sparkman (1600/1400), Bubbleman (800/1200), and Avian (1000/1000), which I've placed in defense mode. The next sweet part of splitting apart is since Tempest is gone, your Spellbinding Circle is too, meaning your mage gets weaker (4500 – 500 4000/2000 – 500 1500). Plus, your attack missed, meaning your mage is useless to you for the rest of the turn." Jaden explained.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan nodded, saying "Well done, but you helped me out. Don't forget, when you played your spell, you strengthened Cerberus again (1400 500 1900/1400). And he can still attack. Go, take down Bubbleman! Mythical Pounce!"

Rushing forward, the large blue and purple dog leapt into the air and came crashing down onto the white caped warrior. He only screamed out in pain as he shattered, leaving only two warriors behind.

"Unfortunately, Cerberus get's a bit weaker (1400/1400), but he'll manage. I'll place a card face down (4000 500 4500/1500 500 2000) to end my turn." (Illidan 1000, Jaden 600)

Nodding, Jaden calmly drew and smiled at his new card. "Sweet move there last turn Professor Illidan, but it's my turn to take it to you. First up, the spell Spy Hero! To activate this card, I have to first toss out the top two cards on my deck."

Picking up two cards, Jaden gently placed them within the Graveyard Slot, which simply sucked the cards in. "Next, my Spy Hero cuts in and uses his super stealth to take a random spell card from your Graveyard."

A shadowy figure that was barely visible except for a a red H on his chest appeared in front of Jaden, but instantly vanished into the background.

"Not bad Jaden, but don't forget Cerberus gets stronger now (1400 500 1900/1400)." Illidan commented. He then suddenly felt a tug on his Duel Disk. Glancing down, he saw the shadowy figure's hand reach into his Graveyard Slot and fling a spell card at Jaden.

Expertly catching it, Jaden smiled, saying "Thanks Illidan, you're the best! I just got Pot of Greed, meaning two new cards for me."

"No problem, but remember, each spell strengthens Cerberus (1900 500 2400/1400)." Illidan calmly reminded.

Quickly grabbing two cards, Jaden grinned largely. "No biggy. Now I'll hook up my Sparkman with the equip spell Spark Blaster!"

A light glow appeared above the blue and gold warrior who glanced up. The glow soon died down and a blaster weapon dropped into the blue and gold warrior's right hand.

"It's nice of you to keep playing all these spells Jaden. Cerberus really likes it (2400 500 2900/1400)." Illidan chided.

Chuckling, Jaden remarked "Glad you like it, because I'm about to use that against you. I switch Sparkman into attack mode."

Standing up, the blue and gold armored warrior took up an offensive stance while the horizontal card image below him shattered.

"Let me show you right quick what Spark Blaster can do. It has three shots that allow me to switch the mode of any monster on the field. Sparkman, switch Cerberus to defense!"

Aiming his blaster at the blue and purple dog creature, the warrior fired a blast of electrical energy. The blast struck the dog creature, making it snarl while it slowly shifted into a defensive stance. A horizontal card image instantly formed under it, signifying the switch.

Lightly gasping, Illidan began to say something, but was cut off by Jaden calling out "Sparkman, attack Cerberus with Static Shockwave!"

Extending his left arm towards the dog creature, the warrior began pouring electrical bolts of energy out of his palm. The bolts struck the dog creature, making it howl in pain while Illidan covered his face from the small explosion that ensued from the dog's destruction.

"Next, I'll use Spark Blaster to put Sparkman back into defense."

Aiming the blaster at the ground, the blue and gold armored warrior fired a shot and instantly went back into a one knee stance with his arms crossed. The horizontal card image instantly formed under him once he was in position.

"To end, I'll summon Necro Guardna (600/1300) in defense."

A warrior dressed in grey, maroon, and black armor with long white hair that fell to his knees. His armor was spiked, and seemingly built to catch attacks. He instantly took up a kneeling position and crossed his arms. (Illidan 1000, Jaden 600)

"Back to me then." Illidan coolly said while picking up a card. Examining it, he slightly smirked. "I'll play this, my Graceful Charity! This allows me to pick up three more cards, but I have to discard two when I'm done."

Grabbing three cards, Illidan carefully examined them for a moment before picking two and placing them into his Graveyard Slot. "I'll discard Magical Scientist and Magician's Valkyrie. Next up, I activate Card of Sanctity! This spell let's both of us to draw till we hold six cards in our hands."

Both Jaden and Illidan simultaneously drew cards, with Illidan getting six and Jaden five. Looking over his new cards, Illidan smiled. "This duel ends here Jaden. I remove from my Graveyard both Magical Scientist and Magician's Valkyrie in order to special summon another of my Chaos monsters! Rise up Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning (3000/2500)!"

Emerging onto the field was a warrior in black ebony shiny armor with a mixture of gold trim, a black helmet, with a bronze colored sword in his right hand and a powerful black and gold shield in his left let out a small battle cry.

"I'm not done yet, for I summon another monster, my Skilled White Magician (1700/1900)!"

A mage in white robes and cloak with a white hood, a staff, and three half spheres, with one on each shoulder, and one on his chest appeared onto the field. Swinging his staff about into an offensive stance, the mage let out a small battle cry.

"Time to end this Jaden! Black Luster Soldier, cut down his Avian with Chaos Slash!"

Rushing forward with nearly blinding speed, the black armored warrior slashed through the green fur warrior, who only let out a gasp of agony as he slid apart in two pieces. He soon exploded into millions of pieces, leaving Jaden to cover his face from the sheer wind force.

"I activate Black Luster Soldier's special ability! Since he destroyed a monster, he can now attack again. Go, cut down his Sparkman with Chaos Slash!"

Moving across the field in a flash once more, the black armored warrior made quick work of the blue and gold armored warrior, who only cried out in pain when slashed across the chest. The warrior soon exploded, leaving only one more warrior to defend Jaden.

"Eliminate the last of his defenses Skilled White Magician! Skilled White Magic Attack!"

Twirling his scepter in front of his body, the white robed mage finally stopped his staff that was now aimed at the final warrior. A blast of white magical energy instantly went flying across the field and slammed into the warrior in grey and maroon armor. The warrior let out a loud cry before finally shattering into pieces.

"Good game Jaden, but it's over. Silent Magician, you know what to do! Direct attack!"

Leaping into the air, the white robed mage with silver hair took aim and fired a large blast of white magical energy. The blast was straight on course for Jaden, making everyone in the crowd gasp in shock.

"I'm not done yet Illidan!" Jaden loudly declared. Holding his hand over his Graveyard Slot, he cried out "I activate Necro Guardna's special effect! By removing him from play, I can now negate your attack!"

Reappearing in a spirit form, the heavily armored warrior placed himself in front of Jaden and took the full hit head on. The blast exploded upon contact, but the image of the warrior remained. He then vanished, leaving Jaden completely unscathed.

Smirking at the development, Illidan calmly said "Nice move Jaden. I should have known you had a trick up your sleeve yet. I'll place this card face down (4500 500 5000/2000 500 2500) and give you a shot." (Illidan 1000, Jaden 600)

"That was close." Syrus said with a little sigh of relief.

"Too close if you ask me soldier." Hasselberry added.

Nodding, Alexis said "If Jaden hopes to win, he's going to have to pull out all the stops."

"I concur. At the rate Illidan keeps attacking, things just keep getting worse. Jaden needs to find a way to neutralize Illidan, and soon." Bastion commented.

"He'd better do it soon. I heard from my parents that hardly anyone survived whenever Illidan kept his Chaos monsters out for very long." Mariah interjected.

Mentally chuckling at the group, Marie stared down at Illidan. "_Keep fighting my love. You're almost there._"

Letting out a small chuckle, Jaden said "Nice moves Illidan. Man, this duel is everything I hoped it would be and then some!"

Smiling, Illidan calmly remarked "Glad you are having a good time as well. I haven't enjoyed a duel like this in quite some time."

"Then let's keep going!" Jaden called out while picking up a new card. "I play the spell Convert Contract, which is a very sweet spell. I send one Neo-Spacian from my hand to the Graveyard, plus another from my deck. I can then draw two cards. My choices are Neo-Spacian Dark Panther from my hand, and Neo-Spacian Glow Moss from my deck."

Placing the first card from his left hand into his Graveyard Slot, Jaden then pulled out his deck and found the other monster card. He soon placed it into the slot as well and placed his deck back into it's slot. Drawing two cards, he examined them and smiled.

"Not bad Jaden, but don't forget, each time you play a spell, my Skilled White Magician gains a Spell Counter." Illidan reminded.

The button on the white mage's left shoulder instantly glowed to life, showing that he had incurred a small bit of strength.

Waving Illidan off, Jaden excitedly said "Yeah, true, he gets a counter, but that won't matter soon. I just drew this cool card, which may sound weird, but I play Cocoon Party! For each Neo-Spacian chilling out in my Graveyard, I get to special summon a monster with the word 'Chrysalis' in it. I'll pick these two, Chrysalis Larva (300/300) and Chrysalis Mole (700/100)."

Materializing onto the field were two pink bubbles. The first held a mostly yellow with red on it's back, green eyed caterpillar like creature. The other held a small light brown mole creature with blue eyes and three clawed hands and feet. Upon the creatures arriving, the button on the white mage's shoulder instantly glowed to life.

"Cute, aren't they?" Jaden teased.

Smirking, Illidan replied "They might be cute, but I have a feeling they won't stay that way."

"Right you are Illidan. They grow up so fast these days." Jaden commented. "And here is how they'll get older! I play the field spell Neo Space!"

Placing the card into the end of his Duel Disk, Jaden watched as the Duel Disk glowed with a rainbow arc of power. Without warning, the entire area surrounding the field became rainbow colored, as if the sky had and the ground had turned into nothing but the multicolor background. Once the field had fully come together, the button on the white mage's chest glowed to life, show that he had all three buttons lit up.

"In here, Neos and all his forms gets a 500 attack point boost." Jaden explained. "Plus, by sacrificing my Chrysalis Larva and Chrysalis Mole, I can special summon their adult forms! Bathe in the power of Neo Space and become Neo-Spacian Flare Scarab (500/500) and Neo-Spacian Grand Mole (900/300)!"

Both pink bubbles instantly shimmered brightly. The first caught a blaze while the other earth formed around it. The flames soon died down, revealing a bug like warrior that had wings on his back, covered by a thick hide, a chiseled body, a helmet that appeared to be like a horned beetle, and a human like face that extended to his neck. Beside of him, the earth formed bubble dissolved, revealing a light brownish-orange mole like creature with drill like shoulder pads and sharp clawed hands and feet.

"Let's not forget Flare Scarab's special ability. For every spell and trap on your field, he gains 400 attack points, and last time I counted, you had three (500 400 3 1700/500)!"

Clenching both his fists, the bug warrior let out a small grunt as flames erupted around his body. After a few moments of the flames licking his body, they dissipated, revealing the warrior had strengthened a bit.

"Next, I activate a little spell known as Fake Hero! This let's me special summon an Elemental Hero from my hand for just this turn. And the one I pick is the one and only Elemental Hero Neos (2500/2000)!"

Above the field, a flash of light appeared, and suddenly a powerful white warrior with a slicked back horn on his head and spikes coming out from his elbow joints appeared. He had a bit of red lining on his body, along with a bit of blue as well. On his chest was a blue circle.

"And don't forget, Neo Space makes Neos stronger by 500 points (2500 500 3000/2000)."

Lightly glowing with rainbow energy, the white warrior took up a fighting stance, as if he was ready at any moment to fight.

"Next, I activate Elemental Hero Necroshade's special effect. Once per the duel, I'm allowed to normal summon an Elemental Hero from my hand without a sacrifice while Necroshade is chillin out in the Grave. And now, give a big welcome to Elemental Hero Bladedge (2600/1800)!"

Upon Jaden slapping the card to his Duel Disk, a large golden warrior with rippling biceps and legs, a set of sharp blades jutting out from his elbows, and a pair of blade like short wings on his back appeared onto the field.

"Time for some Contact Fusion!" Jaden declared. Nodding towards the white warrior, the bug warrior, and the light brown mole, he called out "Neos, Flare Scarab, and Grand Mole, merge together now to form…"

All three monsters instantly leapt into the air, with the mole and the bug warrior flying on each side of the white warrior. Slowly, the two moved closer to the white warrior till finally a flash of white light formed when the three touched together. From the blinding white light formed a new warrior that wore thick olive armor on his body, had a set of bug like wings on his back, a molten left hand and a mole like right hand, the bug warrior's head, and had a flaming aura surrounding his body.

Pointing at his new monster, Jaden cried out "… Elemental Hero Magma Neos (3000/2500)!"

Illidan wearily eyed the monster, saying "I bet there is more to him than meets the eye."

"Correct you are Professor Illidan!" Jaden replied. "Magma Neos comes with some sweet effects! For every card on the field, he gains 400 attack points."

"Wait, 400 per a card!?" Illidan exclaimed in shock.

Nodding, Jaden remarked "That's right. Since you have six cards on your field, and I have three so far on mine, Neos gains a whooping 2700 extra attack points (3000 2700 5700/2500)! Plus, my Neo Space field card grants him an additional 500 attack points (5700 500 6200/2500)."

The large warrior instantly burst into flames as his strength continued to increase. Once the flames died down, a multicolored aura surrounded him, increasing his strength even more.

"Let's finish this duel Neos! Attack Black Luster Soldier with Meteor Meltdown!"

Leaping into the air, the large warrior turned his molten left hand towards the black armored warrior. Flames began to form into a sphere that sent out waves of heat. Without hesitation, the warrior threw his sphere straight for the black armored warrior, who only stood vigilant.

Slightly smirking, Illidan called out "Not happening Jaden! Go De-Fusion! Sure, Silent Magician gets a bit weaker (5000 – 500 4500/2000), but it's worth it since I can split your Magma Neos apart, thus stopping his attack! Plus, since Magma Neos was formed by Contact Fusion, the monsters that you used to form him are back in your deck, meaning when De-Fusion sends Magma Neos back to your Fusion Deck, you'll get no new monsters!"

The spell card instantly sent a wave of energy straight for the large heavily armored warrior. The wave tore through the sphere of flames, easily putting it out, and continued on for a direct course with the large warrior.

"Nice move Illidan, but I'm not letting Neos go that easily. I play the quick play spell Contact Out! This acts like De-Fusion, but is made for Neos specifically. I return Magma Neos to my Fusion Deck, but I'm allowed to special summon the monsters I used to form Magma Neos back from my deck. So welcome back Elemental Hero Neos (3000/2000), Neo-Spacian Flare Scarab (500 400 2 1300/500), and Neo-Spacian Grand Mole (900/300)!" Jaden declared.

The large heavily armored warrior instantly glowed and split apart into three beams of light at the last second before the energy wave from the other spell card could hit it. From the three beams came the powerful white warrior, the bug warrior, and the light brown mole creature.

"Neos, take down Skilled White Magician with Cosmic Crush!"

Leaping into the air, the white warrior pulled back his right arm and sent blue energy flaring up to his fist. He was quickly beginning his descent towards the white robed mage, who slightly looked unsure of what to do.

Pointing at his face down card, Illidan quickly said "Not happening Jaden! I play the trap Ready for Intercepting! Sure, Silent Magician loses another 500 points, but it's worth it (4000/1500). This trap let's me take one of my Spellcasters and flip them into face down defense mode. And guess what, I'm using this on Skilled White Magician, so Neos no longer has a target!"

The white robed mage instantly moved to a one knee stance with his arms crossed and a horizontal card image underneath of him appeared. He then vanished and just a face down horizontal card image remained. The white warrior who had been inbound instantly came to a screeching halt and leapt back to his original side of the field.

Smirking, Jaden calmly said "Not bad Illidan. That was a slick move, but you're not getting off that easy! Go Bladedge, attack his face down mage now with Slice and Dice Attack!"

Letting out a small screech, the golden warrior leapt forward and began flying at breakneck speed towards the horizontal card image. With movements so fast that no one saw what happened, the warrior slashed the card image in half, causing it to explode.

"Oh yeah, one thing about Bladedge, he has a very awesome special ability. When he attacks a monster in defense, the difference in his attack points and your monster's defense points come out of your life points, or in other words, some sweet Trample effect!"

Gasping in shock, Illidan didn't have time to react to the golden warrior, who instantly slashed him across the chest with his large blade arm. Illidan instantly fell to one knee, grasping his chest and panting heavily.

"Before I call it a turn, I'll use Contact Fusion once again, so go and fuse together again into Elemental Hero Magma Neos (3000/2500)!"

Leaping into the air simultaneously, the bug warrior, light brown mole, and the white warrior merged together, recreating the large heavily armored warrior.

"Now that Magma Neos is back, his effect kicks in. He once more gains 400 points per a card on the field (3000 400 6 5400/2500). Plus, he gains another 500 thanks to Neo Space (5400 500 5900/2500)."

Upon hearing Jaden's words, the large heavy armored warrior burst into flames as his power increased. Once the flames died down, the warrior began to glow with a rainbow colored energy, instantly increasing his strength a bit more.

"To end, I'll throw down a face down (5900 400 6300/2500) and end my turn." (Illidan 300, Jaden 600)


	91. Chapter 91: Past vs Future, Pt 4

**Hello again there everyone! Well, this week has been so wacky. First off, my mate called the one company to tell them that she was turning down the offer and was going to work for the State instead (sounds like I'm talking about Fullmetal Alchemist when I say it like that, lol). They were disappointed, but said ok. She then read the letter she had received from the State, only to find a problem… It wasn't a letter saying she had won the job, it said there was another job she could apply for. Needless to say, she was rather distraught over this. She called me up, and I could only tell her try and talk to the other company and see if they'd still consider her. She did so, but they were a bit snotty about it, saying they weren't sure if they'd hire anyone at all now… I think that's a bunch of crap, that they were just pissed off at her and were thinking of not hiring her since she almost took another job over them. At any rate, they said they'd let her know for sure in a week or two, in which she told me if they don't call back, she doesn't care. She said she refused to call them back this time, so we'll see what happens. As for the State, she did say that they had like 4 or 5 positions to fill, and that she was still being considered for the one job. She is also going to interview for another one or so. Hopefully it'll work out for the best. That's my hope and prayer, lol. Other than that drama, we're not moving still, so yay us! As for other stuff, not much really has happened. Saw my grandfather last night, who was doing well. That was about it.**

**Story wise, I've been working hard on **_**Another**_**, but I've put it off for the time being to work on **_**MtM**_**, which is moving along nicely. I have a duel to finish in it, plus another duel to write. It's going over well thus far.**

**Last time, the duel between Illidan and his descendant, Jaden, raged on, with Jaden gaining the upper hand once more. Which of these two will win? That has yet to be answered…**

**Alright, time for the best part! That's right, it's review time!**

**Okami Princess: I'm glad you reviewed, and thanks about my series. (/Blushes at comment on how good it is.\) Thanks. Well, there isn't much more to this story, other than how things go down I suppose. Hmm, an Illidan vs. 'The Chazz' duel, eh? That could be possible in the next story I suppose. True, he has come a long ways since the beginning of the series. Heh, like I said, I'll see if I can fit that in, if not maybe make a one-shot of it, just for you. Thank you for your review and adding my story to your favs!**

**DuelistBlake1852: Thanks for spotting those errors. I'll make sure to fix that spelling error today while I'm on. True, I know about Spellbinding Circle wouldn't be destroyed when Jaden played De-Fusion on Tempest, but I did it, so my bad, lol. I'm learning that that and Call of the Haunted and other traps that target something aren't always destroyed more and more often. Heh, I've found out several things most recently that I had no clue on actually, but that's another story I suppose, lol. Also, true on Ready for Intercepting, that Neos could have continued to attack. He lost his target and got to repick it, but the same card could have been picked. It's cool about telling me about the mistakes. I sometimes cringe at what I read that I had done, knowing that it's not the actual way it should go, but it happens. Thanks for pointing out the problems. Very true about some of the cards like Spellbinding Circle. That is a tricky one, much like CotH. Yes, it's very uncertain who will win this duel at the moment. Thanks for the review!**

**pink-kiss-candy: Very close, lol. Thanks for the review.**

**x-knight20: Thanks. Eh, maybe in the show a Neos deck is a powerhouse, but in the real world, it don't work out so well, lol. I should know since I play a bit of one against my mate, who sometimes crushes it… Thanks for the review!**

**Nathan: It's getting there, and they are running out of powerhouse cards to play. The climactic finale is coming, so hang in there, hehe. Correct about flipping a monster to defense doesn't stop an attack, unless it's the attacking monster. It's all odd, lol. So many rules to the game, hehe. Thanks for the review!**

**Knives91: Yep, they are pummeling one another to death out there. I think he had two face downs, not one. Possibly more… I know I kept track of what he had down throughout this duel, but I'd have to go over my notes to make sure. Thanks for the review!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Yep, Jaden took the lead back, but for how long, lol. It could go either way at this rate. The ending is coming next week, so hang in there. Ok, here is the site addy. I hope and pray it works this time, lol. It is as follows: Just add .html at the end, and that's it. I hope you enjoy the site. It's rather nice, and has all the old episodes too. Thanks for the review!**

**sirbj: Yep, the duel seems to be coming down to it's final stretch, with Jaden just leading by a fraction, and Illidan holding on for dear life. Heh, who will win is still up in the air, but they're both certainly going at it hard. Thanks for the review!**

**JudaiAsuka-fan: Lol, thanks. Illidan could very well win. After all, he has the experience, but Jaden is showing he has enough to combat that too. You never know. Heh, you'll find out eventually who wins, lol. Thanks for the review!**

**Ok, that's all the reviews for this session. Thanks to everyone who sent them to me. Wow, that was the second most amount of reviews I've received. The record is 10 for this story, with this last one, having 9, being second. Great job everyone! Even though this story isn't going to beat **_**ToP**_** in reviews, I'm very proud of how it has turned out, and am very thankful to each and everyone of you who have reviewed and added me to their favs. Heh, it's just nice to know people like my writing, which is what I've always aimed for.**

**Well, I think I'm done for today. I guess the next time I post will be Monday, and then next Friday, this story will conclude. I may do an update after that like always to answer the final reviews. We'll see, I suppose, lol. For now though, everyone have a good weekend. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 91**

"The Serge has almost got this duel won!" Hasselberry declared with pride ringing in his voice.

"Jaden, you can do it!" Syrus cheered on.

Smiling warmly, Alexis mumbled "I knew you could do this."

"The duel isn't over yet." Zane quickly commented.

"Yeah, that Slacker hasn't won yet, so shut your traps!" Chazz irritably growled out.

Frowning, Bastion added "Chazz is right. Jaden has a long way to go yet before he will win."

"Don't forget, my Uncle down there is one tough customer. Jaden may have him on the ropes at the moment, but he's still in this duel. Uncle Illidan won't quit, ever, no matter how bad things look!" Mariah argued.

Hinata glanced down, whispering to Syrus "Don't lose hope though."

Meanwhile, Marie stared at Illidan, whom was still on one knee panting heavily. "_He's being pushed to his limits. I can already tell he's nearing them._"

Concern continued to wash over her face, as she mentally added "_He'll never give up though. Come on Illidan, hang on. I know you can win this one._"

Down on the field, Illidan was still panting hard. Crouched down on one knee, he felt his body lightly shake, as if he was reaching his limits.

"Are you alright Illidan?" Jaden asked, instantly breaking Illidan from his concerns.

Catching his breath at long last, Illidan softly smiled and slowly stood up. Once up, he lightly chuckled, saying "A bit tired, but fine nonetheless."

"Glad to hear. I'd hate to win due that you weren't able to keep going." Jaden admitted.

Chuckling once more, Illidan smirked. "Confident, aren't we?" he taunted.

"Heh, a bit I guess. I mean, after all, I have the most life points between the two of us, and the strongest monster out." Jaden boasted.

Nodding, Illidan smirked, saying "Maybe so, but that could quickly change."

Quickly drawing a card, Illidan examined it and glanced at the other cards in his other hand. "_Hmm, this could work, but I'll have to lure him into attacking me._"

Glancing up at Jaden's field, he lightly frowned. "_He placed a face down card, which I'm guessing it's to preserve Neos. I have to be careful. Jaden is very protective of that card._"

"_Much like how I am of my Chaos monsters._" Illidan mused as an afterthought.

Looking up at Jaden, Illidan called out "Black Luster Soldier, go and attack Bladedge with Chaos Slash!"

Letting out a battle cry, the black armored warrior charged forward and vanished instantly into thin air. He soon reappeared behind the golden warrior with is arms spread out as if he had finished attacking. Moments later, the golden warrior let out a small shrill as three cut marks materialized across his chest. He then finally exploded into millions of pieces, leaving Jaden to cover his face from the small explosion.

"To end, I'll place this face down (4000 500 4500/2000) (6300 400 6700/2500)." (Illidan 300, Jaden 200)

"He just won't give it up." Chazz mumbled softly.

Nodding in agreement, Zane added "He won't either. He'll fight tooth and nail to the end."

"Yes, but how long can he evade Jaden's attacks?" Bastion questioned.

On the field, Jaden drew and smirked. "I'll kick things off this turn by summoning my Neo-Spacian Air Hummingbird (800/600) in defense."

Immediately, a red bird warrior with white wings on his back, a long bill, and talon like hands appeared in a crouching stance with his arms crossed.

"Time to use his special ability! Air Hummingbird, do your thing buddy! Honey Suck!"

Jumping into the air, the bird creature began hovering above the field. Without warning, pink flowers began to bloom from Illidan's cards, making Illidan gasp in shock. The bird then came in and began sucking nectar from the flowers, causing Jaden to lightly glow green.

"I know it may seem strange, but it's pretty sweet. For each card in your hand, I get a sweet 500 life points."

Lightly growling, Illidan lowly muttered "Great…"

"Neos, let's wrap this up! Attack Black Luster Soldier with Meteor Meltdown!"

Leaping into the air, the large armored warrior let out a battle cry and pulled back his left arm. Flames burst into his palm as a sphere formed from the bright kindled fire. With great force behind it, the warrior flung the sphere at the black armored warrior.

"Not happening Jaden, because I have a spell card!" Illidan quickly declared. Once the card rose up from it's face down position, Illidan continued on, saying "I activate Magical Dimension! To play this card, I must first sacrifice a monster."

Rising up onto the field was a golden statue suspended by four chains within a square metal pole box. The statue had doors on it's top half and depicted some kind of face.

Sadly nodding towards his black armored warrior, Illidan said "I'm very sorry Black Luster Soldier, but you are in extreme danger. Please forgive me for this."

Glancing over his shoulder, the black armored warrior mentally called to Illidan, saying back "_I understand my Master._"

Closing his eyes, Illidan called back mentally "_I won't let your sacrifice be in vain._"

Reopening his eyes, Illidan boldly said "I sacrifice Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning to Magical Dimension, meaning your attack no longer has a target!"

The twin doors on the top half the statue instantly swung open and shot out a red beam at the black armored warrior. For a brief instant, the warrior closed his eyes and bowed his head before being sucked into the statue. The doors instantly shut just as the flaming sphere struck the ground where the warrior had once stood.

"Next, I'm allowed to special summon any Spellcaster Type monster I have in my hand to the field in my warrior's place. Come out now Chaos Command Magician (2400/1900)!"

A golden glow instantly flooded out of the closed doors of the statue. The statue immediately opened up and shot out a golden beam onto the field. From the beam came a mage, who was in mostly black robes with a little yellow trim. His facial skin was light blue, which was the only skin really shown. The rest of his body was wrapped up in the black robes, with a long black cape on his back and a large black hat on his head. In his hands was a short black staff that was lightly glowing yellow on the end.

"Not bad Professor Illidan." Jaden commented. "But it'll take more than him to beat me."

Nodding, Illidan remarked "I know that, that's why I activate the last part of Magical Dimension's special effect! I get to destroy one monster on the field now, and my choice is Magma Neos!"

The still open doors to the statue instantly glowed with a dark maroon energy. A beam of dark maroon energy shot out immediately and struck the heavily armored warrior, making him cry out in pain as he shattered to pieces.

Lightly growling with frustration visible, Jaden stopped and instantly smiled. "Good job Professor Illidan, but Neos isn't gone! Watch, for I activate the trap Elemental Mirage! This can be played whenever an Elemental Hero is destroyed. Now I can bring back Magma Neos during the End Phase, in which I'm invoking now!"

The field instantly began to burst into flames as the heavily armored warrior rose up once more.

"Now that Elemental Hero Magma Neos (3000 500 400 5 5500/2500) is back, I'll call it a turn." (Illidan 300, Jaden 1700)

Picking up a card quickly, Illidan called out "Good, because it's my move then!"

Examining his new card, Illidan placed it within his spell/trap card slot. "I place this face down (4000 500 4500/1500 500 2000), and next I summon Element Magician (1500/1200) in defense."

A young woman with blue long hair that was for the most part flowing freely, but semi bound up in small rolls on the side of her head, and wore a light green shirt that went to right above her stomach and a matching skirt that went above her knees and green gloves appeared onto the field. The air surrounding her had small traces of fog as well, giving her an even stranger appearance. Once done showing herself off, the female mage took a one knee stance and crossed her arms.

"Next, I'll switch my remaining monsters to defense."

Both the white robed mage and the black robed mage each took a one knee kneeling position and crossed their arms.

"I shall end my turn at that." (Illidan 300, Jaden 1700)

Frowning, Bastion said "Not much else he could do but prepare his defenses."

"I'm sure Uncle Illidan did more than that. Don't forget, he's a very skilled tactician. He's not done with this duel, I guarantee it." Mariah stated.

"He better do something or the Serge will take him out in a few turns." Hasselberry boasted.

"Don't underestimate him." Zane remarked. "He's far stronger than any of you can even begin to realize."

The entire group nodded, seemingly agreeing with Zane's comment.

On the field, Illidan watched calmly as Jaden drew his card. Jaden instantly brightened up upon seeing his card.

"Looks like this is over already." Jaden said with a small smile. "I first activate Hummingbird's effect! I gain 500 life points since you have only one card left."

Upon his words being said, Jaden's body instantly glowed with a slight green aura as the bird warrior took to the air and began sucking nectar from a flower that materialized.

"Next, I play Miracle Fusion!"

"Miracle Fusion?" Illidan asked with a loss at what the card was.

Nodding, Jaden repeated "Yep, Miracle Fusion! This card lets me remove from play Elemental Heroes from my Graveyard or field and then summon the Fusion monster that could be made from the two. I'll remove both Elemental Hero Wildheart (1500/1600) and Elemental Hero Bladedge (2600/1800) in order to bring out Elemental Hero Wildedge (2600/2300)!"

Slowly, the two monster cards slid out of Jaden's Graveyard and into his awaiting hand. Taking the two, he placed them within his removed from play slot and then slapped the new monster card to his Duel Disk. Instantly, the tan skinned warrior in a white loin cloth and the golden warrior with rippling muscles and several blades appeared. The pair swirled together and from the swirling came a new warrior in golden armor on his left arm and right leg, with a golden helmet. The remainder of the warrior's body was bare tanned skin. On his back was a huge sword in a sheath, seemingly waiting to be used.

"Good game Illidan, but it's over. Wildedge can attack every monster on the field in the same turn. Once he's finished up with your defenses, Magma Neos can finish things off."

A small drop of sweat rolled down Illidan's cheek upon hearing Jaden's accusation, but he calmly said back "I won't lose yet."

"Good attitude, so show me you won't lose! In the meantime, Wildedge, go wild on his monsters! Attack with Scimitar Slash!" Jaden declared.

Rushing forward, the tanned warrior with gold armor pulled his sword out of it's sheath and brandished it in his right hand. Quickly reaching the three mages on Illidan's field, the warrior quickly slashed through the white robed mage first, making it cry out in great pain before exploding. The warrior continued on and made quick work of the mage in black and yellow robes next, who didn't have a chance to move at all. After a moment, the warrior slashed through the final blue haired female mage, making her scream out in pain before vanishing from the field. Finished with his work, the tanned warrior quickly leapt back to his position beside of the heavily armored warrior.

"Let's end this Illidan! Magma Neos, direct attack! Meteor Meltdown!"

Leaping into the air, the heavily armored warrior pointed his left hand straight at Illidan and created a sphere of flaming energy in his palm.

As the warrior prepared to launch his blast, Illidan quickly called out "I'm not done yet Jaden! I play my face down spell card, Spell Textbook!"

With the new card instantly flipping up, the large warrior instantly stopped his attack and looked towards Jaden for guidance.

"So, what's that do?" Jaden asked, rather curiously.

Smirking, Illidan calmly said "First, I must discard my hand. I'll place this, my Sorcerer of Dark Magic, into my Graveyard. Now I'm allowed to draw one card from my deck. If it's a spell card, I can immediately play it. Otherwise, I must discard it and I will lose this duel."

Calming his mind, Illidan looked at his deck and nervously fingered the top card. A small streak of sweat ran down his face as he stood there, staring at the top card. "_This is it. If I draw the right card, I should be able to stop Jaden. But if it's wrong... No! I can't think like that! No matter what, I can't give up! Please Heart of the Cards, help me!_"

Drawing the card with quickness, Illidan smiled at it and showed it to Jaden. "I just drew the spell Reasoning! Here is how it works. First off, you guess a monster level. Then, I pick up cards from my deck till I find a monster. Spell and trap cards are discarded, but when I find a monster, if it's the same level that you guessed, I discard it. But, if it's not the same level, I get to special summon it! So go ahead Jaden, pick a monster level."

Thinking for a moment, Jaden finally said "I'll pick level four, because you've had lots of those!"

Lightly chuckling, Illidan nodded and replied "True. Let's see what I draw then!"

Picking up his first card, Illidan instantly smirked and flashed the card towards Jaden. "It's a monster, but it's not level four. I just picked up Apprentice Magician (400/800), who is level two! Now I special summon him in defense!"

Slapping the card horizontally onto his Duel Disk, Illidan smiled while watching the young mage with blond hair that stuck straight up, wearing a set of purple robes that covered most of his body, and the mage had a green staff in his hands appear onto his field.

Lightly growling, Jaden then smiled and chuckled. "Good move Illidan, but bad also. Don't forget, Wildedge can still attack. Go, Scimitar Slash!"

Letting out a battle cry, the warrior with tan skin and gold armor rushed across the field and slashed the young mage across the chest, instantly cutting him in half and causing a small explosion.

Smirking, Illidan calmly said "Thanks Jaden, I was hoping you'd do that. Now that Apprentice Magician is in my Graveyard, I can special summon a new level two or lower Spellcaster in face down defense mode from my deck."

Fanning his deck out, Illidan quickly searched through it and found his new monster. Upon slapping it horizontally onto his Duel Disk, he said "There we go. That should do."

"You're being difficult." Jaden irritably grumbled.

Smirking, Illidan remarked "But of course. I can't lose, not just yet."

Pointing at the new horizontal card image, Jaden called out "Go, attack it now Wildedge! Scimitar Slash!"

Rushing forward, the warrior prepared to slash the card image in half when suddenly it flipped up and an image of an elder mage with orange like skin, grey hair that reached his shoulders, odd looking darker orange armor that formed some kind of hump on his back, a blue cape, and a green staff then appeared on the card image.

"You're in trouble now Jaden! You just flipped up my Old Vindictive Magician (450/600)! When flipped, he can automatically destroy one monster on the field, and my target is Wildedge, meaning his attack won't destroy my monster!" Illidan quickly called out.

Pointing his staff at the oncoming warrior, the elder mage smirked and released a blast of green energy from his staff. The blast struck the tan warrior head on, making him cry out in great pain before exploding into millions of pieces.

Somewhat growling, Jaden called out "You may have taken down Wildedge, but I still have the advantage! Go Magma Neos, take down that mage! Meteor Meltdown!"

Instantly, a sphere of powerful flames formed within the heavily armored warrior's left palm. Pulling back his arm, the warrior threw the sphere straight for the old mage, instantly shattering it.

"That's all for now." (Illidan 300, Jaden 2200)

Letting out a sigh, Illidan glanced at his deck and then back up at Jaden. "_What a guy. He keeps pushing me to my limits and then some. I haven't experienced a duel so difficult in such a long time. Still, I must remain focused. I know I can win, I just have to keep fighting hard!_"

Looking back at his deck, Illidan drew and smiled. "I set a monster and that's it." (Illidan 300, Jaden 2200)

Nodding, Jaden calmly drew and said "I first switch Air Hummingbird into attack mode."

Slowly, the red bird warrior stood up and stretched out his wings and let out a small cry.

"Go Magma Neos, destroy his monster with Meteor Meltdown!"

Pulling back his molten arm, the heavily armored warrior released a sphere of flaming energy straight at the card image. The image shattered instantly and revealed another blonde haired mage with purple robes with a green staff in hand. The mage instantly shattered into millions of pieces, leaving an empty field.

"Thanks Jaden. You just destroyed another Apprentice Magician (400/800), meaning I can special summon another level two Spellcaster from my deck." Illidan calmly said while pulling his deck out.

After searching for a moment, he slapped a card to his Duel Disk, saying "I pick this one."

Lightly growling, Jaden pointed at the card image, saying "Air Hummingbird, take it down! Swallowing Swoop!"

Leaping into the air, the red bird warrior soon came diving down towards the card image with it's feet first, striking the card image. From the card image came a man dressed in red robes with a blue cape, a red and blue turban, a blue cloth mask covering his nose down, and three crystal spheres circling him. The man was easily destroyed by the explosion, but the three spheres remained.

"Huh, what's that?" Jaden asked in shock.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan calmly said "That's my Crystal Seer (100/100). When destroyed, I'm allowed to pick up two cards from my deck. I then pick a card I wish to keep and add it to my hand, while the other goes to the bottom of my deck."

Drawing two cards, Illidan examined to two before placing one in his left hand and placing the other on the bottom of his deck. "That should do."

Slightly sighing, Jaden perked up and said "Not bad, but I activate Air Hummingbird's effect, allowing me to gain 500 life points. Go, Honey Suck!"

Leaping back into the air, the red bird warrior headed straight for Illidan when suddenly a pink flower bloomed from the card he held. The red bird warrior instantly was drawn to it and began sucking out nectar. While doing this, Jaden's body glowed with a small green aura, but soon faded with the bird finishing.

"I'll throw down a face down and call it a turn." (Illidan 300, Jaden 2700)

Nodding, Illidan picked up a new card and calmly placed it in his left hand. Grabbing the other card in his hand, he gently placed it horizontally onto his Duel Disk, saying "I summon Allure Queen LV3 (500/500) in defense."

Slowly, on the field, a sparking began to materialize. From it, a woman with short brown hair, a black round hat, mischievous eyes, black gloves that reached up to her armpits, a silver and red sort of collar that attached to a long black dress with a maroon colored corset appeared. In her right gloved hand was a staff with a golden ring like object on the end, encrusted with jewels, and a single red jewel on the inside of the circle. Raising her right hand, the mischievous woman's left index finger caught fire. She only stared at it with the flames bouncing off of her eyes. After a moment of staring at the flames, she finally moved to a one knee position and crossed her arms.

"She's quite the looker, I know, but she's more than a pretty face. Allure Queen, why don't you show Air Hummingbird what you can do!"

Nodding, the female mage pointed her staff at the red bird warrior. The warrior gave a puzzled look at her before suddenly a red beam shot out of the red jewel on her staff. Shocked at the beam, the bird warrior tried to move out of the way, but was too late. The beam hit him quickly, and then the bird warrior vanished. Upon the beam fading, the jewel on the woman's staff lightly glowed for a moment, but soon dulled. With it dulling, the image of the small bird warrior inside of it became visible.

"Hey, what did you do to Air Hummingbird!?" Jaden asked with a bit of concern.

Softly chuckling, Illidan replied "Nothing much. You see, Allure Queen has the special ability to absorb level three or lower monsters and equip them to herself."

Lightly growling, Jaden fisted his hands and squeezed them tight in anger. Seeing this, Illidan nonchalantly said "I'll end my turn." (Illidan 300, Jaden 2700)

Quickly drawing, Jaden examined his new card and said "You'll pay for that Illidan. Magma Neos, light up that mage's world! Meteor Meltdown!"

Nodding in response to Jaden, the heavily armored warrior leapt into the air and turned his left palm towards the female mage. Flames instantly licked his hand and began to increase in intensity. They soon formed into a large sphere of flames, which the warrior finally tossed straight at the female mage.

Smirking, the female mage remained calm. The sphere soon hit, but instead of hitting the woman, the sphere hit a red barrier. The barrier shimmered brightly with the blast grazing up against it. Finally, after a few moments, the sphere of flames died down and the barrier shimmered lightly before vanishing.

"Huh!? What happened to Magma Neos's attack!?" Jaden asked in complete shock.

Chuckling, Illidan calmly said "Simple really Jaden. You see, when Allure Queen has a monster equipped to her, instead of being destroyed in battle, the card equipped is destroyed, meaning your Air Hummingbird is now in the Graveyard while she lives on."

Growling with frustration, Jaden clenched his fists tightly before releasing them and slightly smiling. "Sweet move, I gotta admit. To end, I'll activate the equip spell Instant Neospace, and use it on Magma Neos. I'll explain this card a bit later. For now, I'm done." (Illidan 300, Jaden 2700)


	92. Chapter 92: Past vs Future, Pt 5

**Hey everybody! (/Hears group say 'Hey Doctor Nick!'\) Strange… Anyways, this weekend wasn't too bad. Not much really happened. We went to the store Friday for the usual food, which was about it. The last two days, nothing has happened either.**

**Story wise, things are moving along. Me and ardee had another brainstorming session on **_**MtM**_**, and we just keep moving forward from where we were. As for **_**Another**_**, it is moving forward too. Heh, it's hard to split time between the two stories, but I will, I suppose, lol.**

**Last time around, Illidan and Jaden's fierce battle waged on, with neither seemingly pulling out a clear cut advantage. One counters the other constantly, making it difficult for the other to win. In the end, how will the duel end with two powerful competitors?**

**Ok, time for reviews!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Yeah, it is pretty intense. Yep, only two more chapters are left. It is kind of sad that this story is ending, but it had to eventually, lol. The sequel will be good though. That sucks that the link didn't work… I'm at a loss of what to do… The only thing I can think of is to email it to you, but if you'd rather I not, I can see if I can find another way. Maybe make it my webpage or something. We'll find a way. The only reason I can guess to why it's not showing up is possibly doesn't want any kind of advertising to other sites, but eh, I don't know on that one. Thanks about the chapter and for the review!**

**Knives91: Lol, yeah, hehe. Thanks for the review!**

**Nathan: Yeah, the job troubles suck. She'll make it though. Somehow or another she always does. Heh, yeah, the Spell Textbook card is kind of a desperate case card, which would almost likely never work due to the probability of drawing a trap or monster, plus possibly a useful spell card. Still, it's a perfect fan fic card, lol. Yeah, there was another question on Old Vindictive Magician, which I did cheat a bit. Heh, I admit, sometimes I cheat slightly, but I didn't want to get rid of Neos just yet. My choices were destroy Neos or cheat and destroy Wildedge, so I chose cheating, lol. Yes, there are so many rules in MTG too… I played a few times with a friend, but ack, I couldn't understand the game, and wasn't about to jump into another expensive hobby… Yugioh has already cost me dearly enough, lol. Thanks about the chapter and for the review!**

**Well, that's all this time around. Thank you all for your reviews. Well, this is the next to last chapter, so I hope everyone takes it all in, because the next one will be the end. I'll post it on Friday like I said last time. Till then, I hope all of you enjoy reading this one, and take care. Later!**

**Chapter 92**

"Good, cause that means it's my move!" Illidan stated while drawing. Smirking, he turned his new card towards Jaden, saying "I play the spell Pot of Avarice! This lets me take five monsters in my Graveyard and put them back in my deck. I then shuffle and draw two new cards, so here goes. The five monsters I pick are Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning, Chaos Emperor Dragon – Envoy of the End, Chaos Sorcerer, Silent Magician LV4, and Silent Magician LV8!"

One by one, the five monster cards slid out of Illidan's Graveyard Slot. Once all five were out, Illidan picked them up and placed them on top of his deck. Shuffling, he soon stuck the deck back in it's slot and drew two new cards.

"I couldn't have asked for better cards. I sacrifice Allure Queen LV3 in order to summon Cybernetic Magician (2400/1000)!"

A small flash appeared on the field as the young female mage vanished, and a new mage clad in white appeared. He had a small pointed hat, a white and silver trench coat/robes, blue pants, white boots that went up to his knees, and a small l-shaped rod that had a small bit past the corner of the L size. His hair was blonde, and his skin tone was light green.

"Next, I'll activate his special ability! By sending a card from my hand to the Graveyard, I can lower a monster's attack points to 2000. I'll discard Allure Queen LV7 and weaken Magma Neos (2000/2500)!"

Instantly pointing at the mighty heavily armored warrior, the white mage released a blast of blue energy. The warrior cried out in pain and fell to one knee instantly, showing his weakening.

All Jaden could do was grind his teeth as he heard Illidan say "Cybernetic Magician, attack now with Cyber Scepter Blast!"

Pointing his staff at the weakened warrior, the white robed mage released a blue sphere of magical energy straight for the warrior. The blast tore into the once powerful warrior, making him cry out loud in great pain from the blast destroying him. Smoke filled Jaden's field from the explosion, but Jaden remained standing and smirking.

"Thanks Illidan. I knew you'd eventually beat Magma Neos, that's why I equipped him with that spell card. Now Instant Neospace kicks in, allowing me to special summon Elemental Hero Neos (2500 500 3000/2000) from my deck!" Jaden declared.

Instantly, the white warrior appeared onto the field in a fighting pose, seemingly ready to take anything on.

Lightly grumbling, Illidan placed a card in his Spell/Trap Slot and said "I'll lay this down and end." (Illidan 300, Jaden 2300)

Drawing a card, Jaden examined it for a moment before placing it in his left hand. "Alright, here goes. Neos, take down Cybernetic Magician with Cosmic Crush!"

Leaping into the air, the white warrior pulled back his right arm and blue energy began to swirl around his right hand.

"Not so fast Jaden, I have a face down! I activate the spell Mystical Space Typhoon, which lets me destroy one spell or trap card on your field! My target is Neo Space!" Illidan declared while pointing at the background.

All at once, a large typhoon burst onto the field and began striking the endless multicolored dimension. The walls of the dimension instantly shattered, revealing the crowd once more.

"Without Neo Space, your Neos gets a little weaker (3000 – 500 2500/2000), which is just what I needed to happen." Illidan calmly said.

Smirking, Jaden replied "Neos maybe a little weaker, but he's more than strong enough to take on your monster! Neos, take him down!"

Continuing his descent, the white warrior instantly put his arm out and made a chop like strike on the white robed mage, who instantly cried out in pain from the strike before shattering.

"Looks like you're defenseless now Illidan. I activate the spell Damage-Off Zone. Thanks to this spell card, all Battle Damage is cut in half for both of us. At that, I think I'll call it a turn." (Illidan 200, Jaden 2300)

Lightly chuckling, Illidan smiled at Jaden. "This is a great duel Jaden."

Smiling back, Jaden nodded, excitedly saying "Sure is. I'd have to say you're the strongest opponent I've ever faced."

"Thank you." Illidan remarked kindly. "I must admit Jaden, you have pushed me to my limits and beyond in this duel. You're one of the toughest opponents I've ever faced, and you continue to amaze me at how much you've learned so far."

Lightly blushing at the comment, Jaden smiled back. "Thanks Professor …"

"Just Illidan. I'm tired of the niceties." Illidan quipped.

Nodding, Jaden remarked "Right Illidan. Well if you liked what you saw so far, just wait, because I'm not done yet!"

Smirking, Illidan nodded, saying "Glad to hear it. So let's see what I've got left for you!"

Quickly drawing his card, Illidan smiled great big. "It's time I take control of this duel once more Jaden. I play a field spell that will tip the power of this duel. Go Chaos Control!"

The area above the field instantly began to darken and clouds seemed to form. Lightning began flashing from within the clouds, and the ground suddenly turned to sand. In the near distance, a cave could be seen.

"I remember this…" Jaden mumbled lowly.

Nodding, Illidan calmly smirked, saying "Glad you do. Here, once per a turn, I'm allowed to special summon one monster with the word 'Chaos' or 'Envoy' in it's name to the field once per a turn from my deck, hand, Graveyard, or removed from play pile. Unfortunately, the only draw back of this field spell is I'm unable to enter my Draw Phase."

Clenching his right hand into a fist, Illidan quickly released it and pointed to the sky. "Even so, I will defeat you with it! I activate Chaos Control's special ability and now summon one of my oldest and most precious Chaos monsters! I call forth from my deck Dark Magician of Chaos (2800/2600)!"

Lightning instantly began striking the field rapidly in a single area. After a few moments, a figure appeared in the striking and slowly burst out of the bolts. Once the lightning finally stopped, a mage decked out in black leather armor, with an odd mage's hat, blue skin shown only on his face, and a black staff in his hand appeared. The mage finally opened his eyes, revealing strange yellow corneas and red irises.

Glancing back at Illidan, the mage mentally said "_Master Illidan, I sense this battle will truly test us._"

Mentally calling back, Illidan replied "_As do I. Give it your all._"

"_But of course._" the mage said with a hint of happiness in his voice.

Returning his focus to the field, Illidan calmly said "Thanks to Dark Magician of Chaos's special ability, I can return one spell card from my Graveyard to my hand. The one I pick is Card of Sanctity."

Ever so slowly, the spell card finally slid out of Illidan's Graveyard Slot and into his awaiting hand. Picking it up, he then showed it to Jaden and said "Next, I activate Card of Sanctity. You know the drill Jaden, we each draw till we hold six cards in our hands."

Nodding, Jaden picked up six cards while Illidan did the same. Looking his hand over, Illidan finally said "Time for the beginning of your end! I activate the spell Chaos Revisited. First, to use this card, I must give up half my life points, but I won't need them. Next, I can take any monster with the word 'Chaos' or 'Envoy' from my deck, hand, Graveyard, or removed from play pile and special summon it. My choice is this, my Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning (3000/2500) from my deck!"

Once the card had been slapped to Illidan's Duel Disk, the black armored warrior with a shield and sword instantly appeared to the black armored mage's left. The warrior looked up and slightly smirked.

"Time for your end Jaden! I remove from play Apprentice Magician and Cybernetic Magician in order to special summon Chaos Emperor Dragon – Envoy of the End (3000/2500)!"

Slapping the card to his Duel Disk, Illidan smiled while watching the powerful black dragon with an orange mane and a massive wingspan reappear onto the field with a mighty roar.

Smirking, Illidan calmly said "Now that I have all three Chaos monsters out, I can activate Chaos Control's hidden ability." 

"What hidden ability?" Jaden questioned.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan smoothly said "You're about to find out. When I have all three Chaos monsters on the field, I can destroy all monsters on your field by sending Chaos Control to the Graveyard. Plus, as an added bonus, I can direct attack you! Chaos Control, destroy Jaden's Neos once and for all!"

Lightning instantly began striking the ground in a path straight for the white warrior, who showed absolutely no fear.

"I was waiting for you to do that. I had a feeling you'd try something like that, so I play a trap known as Emergency Evasion!" Jaden declared.

Instantly, just as the lightning was about to strike the white warrior, the warrior vanished, causing the lightning to strike nothing.

"What happened to Neos?" Illidan asked, unsure of what had happened to the warrior.

Chuckling, Jaden explained. "When Emergency Evasion is activated, Neos was removed from play. Now that your card has resolved, I get to draw one card from my deck. If the card is the same as the one I removed from play, meaning if it's a monster, I can special summon back from my removed from play pile Neos."

Holding his Duel Disk up a bit, Jaden added "Let's see what card is next!"

Drawing, he examined it and smirked. Flipping it around to show Illidan, he said "Check it out, it's Neo-Spacian Aqua Dolphin, who is most definitely a monster. That means Neos (2500/2000) returns!"

The white warrior once more appeared onto the field and placed his hands on his hips, as if challenging someone to fight him. Once reappearing, the darkened sky and desert slowly faded away, revealing the crowd once more.

Softly smiling, Illidan remarked "Nice move Jaden, but it's too little, too late. My field spell maybe gone, but it's remaining effect allows me to direct attack you. Game over Jaden! Go, attack him directly now with Chaos Scepter Blast, Chaos Slash, and Chaos Blaster my three monsters!"

Pointing his staff at Jaden, the black armored mage released a large sphere of black magical energy, while the black armored soldier swung his sword, creating a blade of energy that went racing for Jaden. The large black dragon brought up the rear with a large black sphere of flames being shot out of it's mouth.

All three attacks raced by the white warrior, he stared back at Jaden, seemingly wanting to defend him, but unable to.

The blasts soon made contact, causing a massive explosion to ensue with a large plume of smoke bellowing outwards. Slowly, the smoke dissipated to where the white warrior could still be seen, but laughter soon followed. Emerging from the smoke was Jaden, still standing and laughing.

"Huh? Why didn't you lose the duel?" Illidan asked in disbelief.

Stopping his laughing, Jaden smirked and pulled a card from his Spell/Trap Slot. Showing it to Illidan, he tauntingly asked "Remember Damage-Off Zone? Well, when I send it to the Graveyard and pay half my life points, all Battle Damage goes to zero."

Lightly growling, Illidan calmed himself and said "I see. Well then, in that case, I shall lay two cards face down and end my move." (Illidan 100, Jaden 1150)

"The Serge just dodged a major bullet there!" Hasselberry said in exasperation.

Nodding in agreement, Syrus added "That was way too close. Maybe now that Jaden has a turn he'll take Illidan down."

"Perhaps, or perhaps Jaden will still fall to Illidan." Bastion commented.

"Don't say that Bastion." Alexis growled out. Softening a bit, she kindly said "He'll make it, I know he will."

Noting Marie's quietness, Mariah stood up and walked down to beside of her. Sitting down, she softly said "Don't worry Auntie Marie, I'm sure Illidan can still win this."

Smiling graciously, Marie kindly replied "I'm not worried. He's out there having the most fun he's had in a long time. I think this duel is what he has always wanted. It's pushing him beyond the limits that he thought he had."

"But… can he keep this up?" Mariah hesitantly asked.

Sighing lightly, Marie shook her head, saying with a twinge of sadness "I don't think so. I can only hope he can, but I know Illidan, and he I can tell, this duel is taking it's toll on him. It's taxing him a bit, and with such a fierce opponent as Jaden, it has to end eventually."

Once more sighing, Marie softly smiled, adding "But that doesn't mean he can't win. I know he's trying his best, but against Jaden, it may not be enough…"

Pausing for a moment, she quietly said to herself "_Still, I have faith in him. I know he can do this. I believe in you Illidan._"

On the field, Jaden let out a small sigh and drew his new card. Examining it, he softly smiled, saying "Let's end this Illidan."

"Try it." Illidan calmly commented back.

Nodding, Jaden quickly said "I'll start things off by playing the spell Cocoon Rebirth, which is rather special, but I'll explain it in a moment. Next, I activate another spell, Spell Reproduction. Now by ditching these two spell cards, Hero Mask and Feather Shot, I can bring back a spell card from my Graveyard. The card I want back is Cocoon Party!"

Placing the two spell cards into his Graveyard Slot, Jaden watched patiently as they were sucked in. Moments later, the single spell card slid out. Picking it up, Jaden smirked.

"Next, I play Cocoon Party! For each Neo-Spacian chilling out in my Graveyard, I get a Chrysalis monster. Right now, I have three, so I can special summon three Chrysalis monsters. My choices are…"

Pulling his deck out, Jaden searched through it before pulling out three cards. Placing them onto his Duel Disk, one by one, he continued on saying "… Chrysalis Pantail (800/300), Chrysalis Pini (100/700), and Chrysalis Chicky (600/400)."

Appearing onto the field, with each in a pink bubble, was a small black cat like creature, followed by a small light green glowing creature with a round head and small eyes, and finally a small red bird.

"I don't understand why you summoned them Jaden. None of them can evolve since Neo Space is gone, so what was the point?" Illidan calmly asked.

Smirking, Jaden remarked "Glad you asked Illidan. Remember that spell, Cocoon Rebirth? Well, it's the reason I summoned these little guys. By sacrificing them, I can special summon from the Graveyard their adult forms."

"Wait, you mean you can bring back each of their Neo-Spacian forms?" Illidan asked with a small drop of sweat rolling down his cheek.

Nodding in reply, Jaden quickly said "Yep, I sure can. I'll start with this one, Chrysalis Pantail. I'll just sacrifice it and now I can bring back Neo-Spacian Dark Panther (1000/500)!"

The pink bubble with the small black kitten instantly glowed brightly to the point no one could look at it anymore. Once the glow died down, a powerful black panther with a black cape was left in the place of the kitten. The panther let out a lowly growl, as if warning anyone to try something.

"Next, I'll send both Chrysalis Pini and Chrysalis Chicky to my Graveyard and bring back Neo-Spacian Glow Moss (300/900) and Neo-Spacian Air Hummingbird (800/600)!"

Both the pink bubbles remaining instantly shimmered brightly as a bright glow flooded the field. Slowly, the glow died to reveal a light green human like creature with a round head and two round black holes for eyes and a red bird like warrior with white wings on his back.

Nodding towards the white warrior, the black panther, and the glowing figure, Jaden called out "Neos, Dark Panther, and Glow Moss, merge together with Contact Fusion to create…!"

The three instantly leapt into the air with the white warrior moving to the middle and the other two to each of his sides. The three slowly melded into one and a brilliant flash of light filled the arena. The light died down slowly to reveal a mostly white creature with black forming on most of it's lower body with light green lights gleaming from traces on his body. The new warrior had a large wing span that had white outlines and red skin on the inside of the wings. The warrior's hands had large white claws that appeared rather sharp.

"… Elemental Hero Chaos Neos (3000/2500)! Meet my Chaos monster!" Jaden boldly declared.

Staring at the monster with shock, Illidan slowly said "Another Chaos monster... And it belongs to Jaden…"

Looking down, Illidan softly smiled and closed his eyes. "_Heh, I guess I should have expected this. After all, Jaden is a descendent of me, so it's only fitting he has his own Chaos monster._"

Reopening his eyes, Illidan warmly said "Come and attack me Jaden. Show me what your Chaos Neos can do."

Nodding with anticipation in his eye, Jaden called out "Can do! Chaos Neos, attack Dark Magician of Chaos with Chaos Swipes!"

Flying forward at an incredible speed, the warrior was on top of the mage before he could react. Pulling back his right arm, the white and black warrior prepared to make contact with the mage, who stared wide eyed.

Seeing this, Illidan quickly called out "Not happening Jaden! I play my trap, Waboku!"

Before the warrior could hit the mage with his claw, the black and white warrior's claws struck a barrier. Behind the barrier were three female mages in blue robes, each chanting a spell to keep the barrier up. Finally, the warrior gave up and backed off from the barrier.

"Thanks to Waboku, all Battle Damage goes to zero, meaning that little skirmish was cancelled out. Sorry Jaden, but your Chaos monster will have to wait a while to fight mine." Illidan chided.

Slightly smirking, Jaden replied "Too bad there probably won't be a second shot. I'll throw down two face downs and summon Card Blocker (400/400) in defense."

A small fairy like warrior with purple armor that left his legs and arms bare, with a sword and shield appeared onto the field in a kneeling stance.

"Next, I play Air Hummingbird's effect. I get 500 points per a card in your hand, so go Hummingbird! Honey Suck!"

Lifting his body quickly into the air, the red bird warrior swiftly crossed the field and began moving towards Illidan. Pink flowers blossomed from Illidan's two cards, which the bird warrior instantly went to and began sucking out nectar. While doing so, Jaden's body glowed with a green aura and his life point counter rose. Once the bird finished feasting, he flew back to his position and crossed his arms.

"That's all I can do, and unfortunately, Chaos Neos returns to my Fusion deck due to his special ability."

Immediately, the black and white warrior glowed with a flash of white light. The warrior soon disappeared, leaving only the purple armored warrior and the red bird warrior behind.

"Your move." (Illidan 100, Jaden 2150)


	93. Chapter 93: Bright Future

**Hello for the last time everyone. Well, this week has been a crazy one, lol. Tuesday, I took my car and had it's oil changed and tires rotated, and was supposed to get it's fuel filter changed too… Unfortunately, they didn't have any of the fuel filters on stock, nor did anyone else apparently within the close by region. They had to special order it from the factory, meaning I had to go back Thursday. Anyways, ****I went back yesterday and they put it on, but damn, it was expensive. Freaking 60 some bucks for the filter itself! At least it's good for another 30k miles. Other than that, yesterday was a pleasant day to spend with my mate. We went out for Valentines Day, which was fun. I bought her flowers online, but they didn't arrive before we left for dinner. When we got back, our neighbor brought them over, which was so nice. The rest of the night… well, that's for me and my mate to know, hehe. Work has been busy though, with us doing a whole lot this week. It's all due today, so joy, lol.**

**Writing wise, I'm working on both **_**Another **_**and **_**MtM**_** as fast as I can, but it takes time, lol. As for the release date on **_**MtM**_**, I'm unsure right now. Me and ardee talked about posting in April, but we'll see. Time will tell for sure. For now though, I am posting **_**Another **_**once a week. Until I'm sure I'm far enough ahead, I'll probably keep it that way. I don't want to catch up with where I am writing wise with posting, lol. It becomes stressful if I do.**

**Last time, Illidan and Jaden continued their battle, with neither gaining the upper hand still. How much longer can the two keep this up, and who will come out of this duel the winner?**

**Ok, it's time once more to do reviews. It's sad it'll be the last time for this story, but it happens. Alright, let's do it!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Yeah, Jaden almost had Illidan with Chaos Neos, but no such luck. Heh, yep, anything could happen now. This chapter does decide it all, so get ready for it! I'm guessing that that's the problem with the link. I'll try to send you an email if I get time today. If that don't work, eh, I don't know, lol. Thanks about the chapter and for the review!**

**Knives91: Lol, true, they had to be running out of cards. Thanks for the review!**

**Nathan: Eh, yeah, it's another expensive hobby. No thanks, lol. Yep, Jaden survived Chaos Control, much like Legato did. Yes, Jaden has his own Chaos Monster to control. Heh, it would be hilarious if Jaden had used Chaos Control to summon Chaos Neos. Thanks for the review!**

**x-knight20: Thanks. It's very close, and it only gets closer. Thanks about the stories and for the review!**

**Well, that's the last of the reviews. Thank you everyone who has submitted reviews to me over the course of this story. I enjoyed reading and responding to all of them, and look forward to the last ones for this story. Thank you all for them once again.**

**As everyone knows, this is the last chapter, but not the end of the series. No, there is one last sequel. Once it ends, that will be the last of the Illidan and Marie series. The series shall be discontinued, lol. Actually, it'll just be finished due that I've decided not to go any further, hehe. But anyways, this story has done great. I was a little unsure how it would do since it was moving from Yugioh to Yugioh GX, but I'm very happy with how it turned out. It had almost as many reviews as **_**ToP**_** did, which was really exciting and surprising. Plus, it did it with half as many hits, which was really surprising. Not to mention, this story does have more words than **_**ToP**_**, thus it is my longest story technically. I'd like to thank everyone who has helped me in keeping this story going by reading it and reviewing, adding it to favs, etc. It always helps when I know my stories are being read.**

**There will be one last post before this story completely concludes, which will be responses to the reviews. Other than that, this story is complete.**

**From here, where I go is to write on **_**MtM**_** and **_**Another**__**Another**_** will continue to be posted once a week, most likely Wednesday still. It just depends on how much more I get wrote on it if I bump it up to two posts a week or not. Also, by request by one reviewer, I'm going to do a one-shot soon that accompanies the ending of this story.**

**Other than that, that's all I have for now. Thank you everyone once again for your reviews and support. Without it, heh, who knows how far I'd have continued this series. Thanks for everything everyone. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 93**

Drawing a card, Illidan quickly said "Good, because I have all I need on my field already. Go Chaos Emperor Dragon, attack Air Hummingbird now with Chaos Blaster!"

Roaring loudly, the black dragon fired a blast of black flames in a sphere straight for the bird warrior.

"Not so fast Illidan! I play my Card Blocker's effect! I can now force him to take the hit for Air Hummingbird, so go block that shot!" Jaden declared.

The purple armored warrior quickly sprang to action and leapt in front of the red bird warrior. Immediately, the blast of black flames struck the warrior, incinerating him easily.

Lightly chuckling, Jaden called out "I'm not through yet, for I play a trap! Go Call of the Haunted, which lets me bring back from my Graveyard Hero Kid (300/600)!"

A kid in red and white futuristic armor with some black on it's legs and arms, with jet boots, a domed helmet, a red mask that covered most of their face, an orange bandanna, and messy purple hair appeared onto the field.

Slightly confused, Illidan remarked "I'm unsure why you'd use that monster Jaden. I mean, he hardly has any attack points."

"True, Hero Kid may not look like much, but I have my reasons for picking him." Jaden admonished.

Shrugging, Illidan continued on, saying "Very well, so be it. Go Black Luster Soldier, attack Hero Kid with Chaos Slash!"

Rushing forward, the black armored warrior pulled his sword off to the side and prepared to strike the weaker kid monster.

"Not gonna happen Illidan, because I play a trap! Go Kids Guard, which lets me sacrifice one Hero Kid in order to negate your attack!" Jaden bravely called out.

Nodding, the purple haired kid leapt up into the air and sent out a wave of barrier energy that surrounded his body. The black armored warrior struck the barrier, but was thrown backwards off of it.

"Kids Guard comes with another sweet effect. I can now take an Elemental Hero from my deck and add it to my hand. My choice is obvious, I pick Elemental Hero Neos."

"No big surprise there." Illidan remarked while Jaden pulled his card from his deck and then reshuffled.

Smiling, Illidan calmly added "Still, you're about to be defenseless. Dark Magician of Chaos, attack Air Hummingbird with Chaos Scepter Blast!"

Pointing his staff at the red bird warrior, the mage took aim and released a black sphere of magical energy from it.

Before the blast could hit, Jaden called out "Not a bad plan Illidan, but I have one last trap up my sleeve! I play A Hero Emerges! Thanks to this card, you now get to randomly pick a card from my hand. If it's a monster, I can special summon it. If it's not, the card goes to the Graveyard. So go ahead Illidan, pick a card."

Looking at the three cards in Jaden's hand, Illidan pondered on a choice for a few moments. After a long deliberation, he finally pointed towards Jaden, saying "The middle one."

Grabbing hold of the card, Jaden smirked, saying "Good choice. You just picked Elemental Hero Neos (2500/2000)!"

Upon Jaden placing the card onto his Duel Disk, the white warrior reappeared onto the field and took up a fighting pose.

"Your Air Hummingbird is out here still!" Illidan growled out with great frustration showing on his face.

The black sphere of magical energy immediately struck the red bird warrior, shattering it into millions of pieces and sending some of the blast back to Jaden, making him cry out in pain and begin panting heavily.

"And don't forget, when Dark Magician of Chaos destroys a monster, it's removed from play instead of being sent to the Graveyard. And on that note, I end my turn." (Illidan 100, Jaden 150)

Looking on gravely, Hasselberry muttered "Come on Serge, hang on."

"Jaden…" Syrus mumbled lowly.

"Come on Slacker, are you gonna lose now after all the work we put in this year!?" Chazz surprisingly yelled out.

Looking up at the stands, Jaden smiled while regaining his breath. After a moment, he finally called back "Thanks Chazz, but I'm not done."

Turning back to Illidan, he added "A duel isn't over till the last card is played, and last time I checked, it was my move, so here goes!"

Picking up a card, he smiled, saying "Let's end this."

"Give it your best shot." Illidan responded firmly.

"I'll kick things off by playing the spell Burial from a Different Dimension, allowing me to place my Neo-Spacian Air Hummingbird back into my Graveyard. Next, I'm activating Contact Soul! When I have Neos on my field, I can special summon a Neo-Spacian from my deck, hand, or Graveyard. I'll pick my Graveyard, so welcome back Neo-Spacian Air Hummingbird (800/600)!"

Flashing back onto the field in a small gust of wind was the red bird warrior with white wings.

"Next, I'll summon my Neo-Spacian Aqua Dolphin (600/800) to the field!"

A tower of water suddenly flowed up from the field. Coming out of the tower was a dolphin warrior with blue and white skin, fins on his elbows and a fin on his head, and a pair of space boots with fins sticking out on his back. Once out of the water, the dolphin warrior folded his arms and smirked lightly.

"Guys, you know what to do! Time for some Contact Fusion, so Elemental Hero Neos, Aqua Dolphin, and Air Hummingbird, merge together to create my newest Elemental Hero! Rise up Elemental Hero Storm Neos (3000/2500)!"

The three monsters instantly took to the air with the white warrior moving to the middle and the other two to each of his sides. Slowly, the three melded into one and a brilliant flash of light filled the arena. The light died down gradually to reveal a mostly blue warrior with large pink wings with blue trim on the top parts. The blue armor appeared to be mostly sleek with spiked like points coming at the warrior's joints. Wind slightly swirled around the new warrior, with a small mist of rain seemingly in the air.

Slightly shocked, Illidan quickly regained his composure and stated "That monster is impressive Jaden, but he won't be enough to end this duel."

"I'd have to disagree, Illidan." Jaden remarked. "It's time I activated Storm Neos's special ability! User your Hurricane Typhoon to clear away all of our spell and trap cards Neos!"

Nodding, the large blue warrior rose into the air and began sending out bolts of electricity from between it's wings. Slowly, a storm rose up around Illidan and Jaden, sending out great gusts of wind.

Lightly smirking, Illidan calmly said "This plan of yours may succeed Jaden, but not entirely. I play my face down trap, Chaos Formation. When I have three Chaos monsters on my field, I can destroy all monsters on your field. Say farewell to Storm Neos."

The black armored mage, the black armored warrior, and the black dragon all three at once began glowing with a dark energy aura. Without warning, the three sent out a beam of dark energy that formed into a single beam and struck the powerful blue warrior. After a moment of crying out in pain, the warrior exploded into pieces, but not before completing the storm that shattered all of the remaining spell and trap cards on both Illidan and Jaden's fields.

"Due to the effect of Chaos Formation, you can draw one card. But for now, it looks like this duel is over Jaden. You played well, but it's time you accept it's over with now."

Drawing his card, Jaden began chuckling loudly and boldly before he replied to Illidan with "You crack me up Illidan! Don't forget, I told you before, a duel isn't over till the last card is played. Last time I checked, I still had a card left that can beat you. You see, I was prepared in the case of Storm Neos getting destroyed."

Sweat lightly trickled down Illidan's cheek as he asked "You were?"

Nodding, Jaden responded with "Sure was. I activate the spell Rebirth of Neos! When a Fusion monster with the name Neos goes to the Grave, well, I can special summon Elemental Hero Neos (2500/2000) from my deck to the field!"

Instantly, above the field, a rainbow glow appeared as the white warrior from before remerged into the field in a fighting stance.

"And here's the sweet part. Other than being special summoned by this card, he gains a 1000 extra attack points (2500 1000 3500/2000)!"

The white warrior instantly began to glow with a light white energy, making him flex his muscles a bit and take up another offensive pose.

Staring at the white warrior, Illidan softly smiled and closed his eyes. "Finish it Jaden."

Seeing the resolve Illidan had put forth, Jaden nodded, kindly saying "It was a real honor to duel you Illidan. Neos, attack Dark Magician of Chaos with Cosmic Crush!"

Taking to the air, the white warrior pulled back his right fist to prepare for his attack. Blue energy began coursing down towards the fist, building up slowly over time. At long last, the warrior began his descent towards the black leather armored mage.

Reopening his eyes, Illidan sadly smiled at his mage, saying mentally to it "_I'm sorry Dark Magician of Chaos. I failed you._"

Glancing over his shoulder, the blue skinned mage sadly smiled back, whispering in Illidan's mind "_No Master Illidan, you have not failed me. I hold no regret over this loss._"

Looking back towards the oncoming warrior, the black armored mage braced himself for the incoming pain. The white warrior finally landed on the ground in front of the mage and unloaded his right fist into the mage's gut, making the mage scream out in pain before exploding into millions of pieces. A small sliver of the energy from the warrior flew on past the mage, striking Illidan hard enough to knock him to one knee.

All at once, the arena became quiet with the holograms dissolving into nothingness. One by one, the students and teachers stood and began clapping their hands till the applause was deafening.

Each and every one of Jaden's friends smiled happily at him, with most of them starting to make their way out of the stands and towards the Dueling Ring.

Standing up and taking to the middle of the ring, the Chancellor turned on his microphone and declared "Here is your winner of the Graduation Duel, Jaden Yuki!"

Rushing to Illidan's side, Marie quickly fell to her knees and put a hand on Illidan's shoulder. "Are you alright?" she asked with a small bit of concern.

Softly smiling, Illidan nodded and stood up. Upon standing up, he saw Jaden standing in front of him.

"Totally sweet duel Illidan! You're the best I've ever faced!" Jaden happily exclaimed with a big goofy smile.

Lightly chuckling, Illidan remarked "And you're by far the best I've dueled Jaden. Congratulations on the victory."

Offering his hand, Jaden smiled, saying "Thanks."

Taking it, Illidan graciously said "You deserve it."

Separating, the two were each hugged. Marie embraced Illidan from the side and kissed his cheek, while Alexis shyly hugged Jaden's side. Both Alexis and Jaden blushed furiously, but she didn't let go.

Finally letting go, she mumbled "Congratulations."

"Thanks Alexis." Jaden shyly said.

Hearing chuckling, the pair turned to Illidan and Marie, finding it was them that were chuckling. "What!?" both asked.

"Ah, young love." Marie teased.

Both Jaden and Alexis's blushes deepened, with each turning away from one another. The Chancellor then intervened and carted Jaden away, dragging Alexis along with them.

Turning to Illidan, Marie asked in a serious voice "Are you alright with the loss?"

Smiling happily, Illidan replied "Yes, I'm fine with it. This duel has taught me that the next generation is truly strong. I've learned that throughout this year by watching our students. Through hard work and perseverance, each has achieved a strength of their own."

Smiling once more while glancing at Jaden and Alexis, Illidan added "The future is bright Marie. Jaden shall lead the way from now on. I'm sure the road for his ultimate goal shall be bumpy, but if anything, today has proven to me that he can accomplish his dream."

Beginning to walk off the stage, the pair left the arena, allowing Jaden to soak in his great victory and the events afterwards.

Smiling while walking out of the arena, Illidan whispered in his mind "_Never give up on your dreams Jaden._"


	94. Farewell

**Well, that'd be the end of **_**Forgotten Guardians**_**. I'd like to thank everyone for reading and supporting this fan fic. I hope you all enjoyed it as much as I did writing it.**

**This fan fic did really great overall. It had 529 reviews, which is a feat in itself due that they were accumulated with less than half the hits that **_**ToP**_** had. Plus, this story was longer, word wise, than any of my others, which made me very happy to know. Now I can't say **_**ToP**_** is technically my longest, lol.**

**Btw, here is something everyone may have not known. Before I began the **_**ToP**_** you all came to know and like, there was a different **_**ToP**_**. It's plot was flimsy to say the least, with like 200 some duelists competing, but I had my own character, Illidan, still, plus Marie, and a few others that knew off a Yugioh site. Again, the plot was rather sucky, but had basically the same idea behind it. I scrapped it not long after getting through a few rounds and kind of gave up on writing temporarily. Then in the summer of 04, I was bored at work and in my mind came up with the idea of how I really wanted **_**ToP**_** to be like. Heh, ten people vs 200 was much better. Anyways, I just thought I'd share that factoid with everyone.**

**As for my plans on the future, I will be releasing a one-shot in the near future, I hope, called **_**Chazzed Off**_**. It goes with the end of **_**FG**_**, so the two are concurrent. I should have it done sometime this month, I hope. If not, it'll be early the next one. Next up, I will also still be posting **_**Another**_** for anyone who is an Inuyasha fan. Finally, with a little luck and hope, me and ardee should have enough work done on **_**Minutes to Midnight**_**, the sequel to **_**Forgotten Guardians**_**, done in April so we can begin posting. That isn't a promise though, due that we're unsure how far we'll be. Time will tell if we get done by that time, but we'll see. You just never know. Heh, splitting my time between **_**Another **_**and **_**MtM**_** is kind of hard, but I'm up for it, I guess, lol.**

**Alright, now then, I'll go ahead and answer the last reviews.**

**x-knight20: Thank you. I'm glad you liked both the story and the chapter. Thanks for your review!**

**Knives91: Lol, I guess Illidan did get pwned in the end. LOL! I didn't realize he was that short. Thanks for the review!**

**sirbj: It's cool about not being around to do reviews. Real life is more important. Glad you like the end of the duel. I had thought of Illidan winning, but in a way, I think the ending was symbolic, that the torch had been passed onto the next generation. Glad you want to see the sequel, because it will be coming, hopefully in the near future. Thanks for the review!**

**Nathan: Thanks. Yep, the duel came down to the two favorite monsters of both Illidan and Jaden. I figured it would be kind of symbolic in a way too. Yeah, I know, it's kind of sad that the story is over, but the sequel will be out in the near future. Yep, **_**MtM**_** will be out sometime soon, so don't worry, Illidan and Marie's adventures aren't over yet. Thanks for the review!**

**JudaiAsuka-fan: Thanks about the ending. Yeah, a bit of a hint of Jaden and Alexis, hehe. I couldn't resist. Yes, the sequel is indeed a GX story, which means it will include the gang once again. Pretty much all the characters in this story, minus a few here and there, lol. Glad you really liked my story. Hopefully I'll see you in the sequel. Thanks for the review!**

**Ultimate Legendary Master: Yep, that's the end. I'm glad you thought it's a good trilogy. I wanted to end it with the three, but I guess I'll push on, lol. Glad you're anxious to see how **_**MtM**_** turns out. From what me and ardee have written thus far, I think it looks good and exciting. Yeah, most people didn't expect Jaden to win, but like I've said before, it's kind of symbolic that he won. He beat one of the best in the past, thus making him one of the best in the future. Yeah, it really sucked about the filter… At least my car is taken care of for 30k more miles. Glad you really did like this story, and don't worry, **_**MtM**_** will be out before you know it. I look forward to seeing you there! Thanks for the reviews!**

**Well, that's it. I thank everyone once more for reading this story. I would like to add a special thanks to my mate for encouraging me to continue to crank out stories like this. If not for her help, I'd have run out of ideas long ago, lol. Also, I'd like to thank a few authors for the ideas they gave me from time to time. Well, this is it, so I hope you all have enjoyed this story. The sequel to this story, entitled **_**Minutes to Midnight**_**, will be posted in the near future. I hope to see all of you there. Once I begin posting, I'll try to get the word out, but you may have to keep tabs on me too. For now though, thank you all and I hope to see all of you again in the sequel! Later!**

**Illidan the Half Demon**


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